Dark That Follows
by mayghaen17
Summary: Part 4. Damon is being held prisoner by Klaus and Elena has one year to find him before Damon dies and she is forced to remain at Klaus' side as his queen...
1. Chapter 1

**a/n: it took me all day to come up with a beginning, but I finally got it and then I couldn't stop...so here it is. I would like to give everyone fair warning that Damon won't be in this one for a little while. Not the WHOLE thing, but for a little bit. I already have the next two parts ready to go. I hope you like it :) Enjoy!**

ONE

The small clearing in the middle of the forest was illuminated by the light of the full moon, bathing it in a silver-blue light. The snow on the ground only reflected the light, seeming to brighten the surroundings, casting ghostly shadows from the trees all around. The branches rustling in the wind gave off an eerie noise due to the dead leaves. I stood there, not breathing, with the only movement being the wind teasing strands of my hair. Snowflakes fell softly, landing without any noise. For being so far away from the city in the middle of night in the dead of winter, I didn't feel the biting cold that I should have. The coat draped around me was for show to the humans that would find it odd that I was wearing a shirt and jeans. The wolf at my feet was lounging on the snow, burying its nose in its front paws. _Where the hell is he?_ Tyler's thoughts sounded clear in my mind.

_Be patient._

_ You're the one that's dead, I'm freezing,_ he returned flatly and let out a little whine.

The sound of light, delicate footsteps over the untouched snow raised my level alertness. I listened and heard two pairs of feet. They would be here soon. Tyler got to his feet, still in wolf form, and gently shook the snowflakes from his fur. He was alert as well, though his job was to protect me. I didn't even blink as two men of roughly the same height broke through the trees. One stopped at the sight of me, the other took his place a few feet behind me. Stefan inclined his head as he passed and I returned with a nod of my own. I kept my eyes on the other man who was maybe a yard or so in front of me. "Your name?" I asked, keeping my hard and emotionless.

"G-Gaston," he stuttered.

I smirked at that. Little did he know thisbeauty was also the beast. I took a few steps forward and he fell backwards, landing on his rear end. He wanted to run away, but he was enthralled. My eyes had that effect on people. I closed the distance between myself and the blundering form of a man in front of me and extended my hand to him. I pulled him gently to his feet and before he could run, I made sure he was returning my stare. "Tell me what you know of Klaus," I demanded in a silky voice that I used when I compelled someone.

His body relaxed and his eyes went blank for a moment. He let out a deep breath that I could see in the tight space between us. "He has not been around in years. The last time he was seen was ten years ago," he answered calmly. He swallowed out of a nervous habit. It was what allowed me to notice the chain around his neck.

I pulled it up and noticed the medallion at the end of it that had been tucked behind his shirt. I ripped the chain off of him and touched the medallion. My eyes closed as I saw a woman in her mid-twenties. She had chest length blonde hair that was styled as if she had just stepped off the catwalk. Her eyes were blue; like the pure blue of an unspoiled ocean on the perfect day. Her skin was creamy with a glow to it that could only be explained by something supernatural. Her body was that perfect hourglass shape that girls around the world would kill for and I was instantly jealous. She had the medallion into her hand and her mouth moved but I couldn't hear anything as she handed it to Gaston. My eyes opened and I looked at him. I held up the medallion in front of him so he could see it. "Who gave this to you?"

"I don't-"

"The blonde woman. What is her name? How can I find her?" I asked, putting a little more aggression in my voice. He was breathing hard and he closed his eyes. He began muttering something in French and after a few seconds it began to sound like a prayer. I rolled my eyes and grabbed the front of his shirt with one hand, pocketing the necklace with the other. "I'm not going to ask you again," I hissed. My canines were beginning to slide down to full length even though I was trying to hold back.

"I don't remember!" he yelled in the best English he could manage as he struggled against me.

"I was trying to do this the easy way," I told him and then cupped his face in my hands, closed my eyes, and pushed myself into his mind. I had some intense practice searching minds and the elaborate labyrinth that I encountered wasn't as intimidating as it once was. There was a dark spot in the back of his mind, indicating a compulsion and erased memories. It took a bit more concentration, but I was able to see what Gaston was supposed to have forgotten. Her name flashed through my mind at the image of the blonde woman in his mind and I let go of him. He crumpled to the ground and curled into the fetal position while crying like a baby. I knew what I had done caused him permanent mental damage, but I was beyond caring. I looked over my shoulder at Tyler and Stefan. "The person we're looking for is Anya Sorkinov."

* * *

I had left the boys to take care of Gaston while I returned to the city. I walked along the city streets, trying to ignore the fact that it was Christmas Eve. Everywhere I looked, there were happy couples that seemed determined to make my bad mood even worse. I knew I should just return to the hotel and wait for one of the others to get back, but I was hungry. I saw a bar and headed towards it. I stopped myself at the edge of the sidewalk and just stared at the sign above the establishment. I sighed and just went back to the hotel like I should have done in the first place. When we had arrived a week ago, the only room had been the penthouse suite. Out in the lesser populated cities, it wasn't as spectacular as we had expected, but it had two separate rooms and roof access. I headed to the roof and leaned against the railing, taking in the lights of the city.

It had been six months since Klaus had disappeared with Damon. I closed my eyes and could still remember it as if it happened a few minutes ago. I would never forget the look on Damon's face the moment he realized what was happening. I thought for sure he would have taken me, but he had surprised us both. The night was a disaster through and through. The only good thing was that Roarke was dead. Bonnie had cast a spell that killed him from the inside out. There wasn't much of a fight, but there had been casualties. Two werewolves, and three vampires had died from Klaus' blood. The legend had been that it would allow the vampire an eternity of sunlight without rings, but it turned out to be wrong. Original blood was poison. It killed within seconds. It was not lethal to humans he turned and the werewolves had died slowly from the taste of it.

I had spent two weeks wallowing in the fact that Damon was not with me; that I would never see him again. Then I realized I had wasted those two weeks when I could have been using that time looking for him. My plan was to do it alone, but Stefan and Tyler followed me and had been with me ever since. Stefan gave Bonnie regular updates on our progress, but I spoke to no one.

Stefan and Tyler were very aware of my personality change, but I tried not to lash out at them if possible. When they first found me, I had given into my hunter's instincts and went on a major killing spree. Stefan compared me to Katherine that night and I had made damn sure that it never happened again. Instead, I settled for acting like Damon had when he first arrived in Mystic Falls; a cold-blooded hunter who attacked when it suited him and showed no mercy. If it hadn't been for Tyler's constant tension breaking humor, I'm fairly certain I would have killed Stefan at least a dozen times.

While I had yet to discover anything useful about where Klaus might be, I had the feeling like that had changed tonight. We had been almost everywhere you could think of to search for him. The only thing we had discovered was that there was an underground society of vampires that even Stefan had been unaware of. It consisted of something right out of a movie with older, powerful vampires running cities like mobsters. Humans like Gaston were their pets or errand runners who were insignificant but useful because the vampire in charge didn't want to do something themselves.

I fished the necklace out of my jacket pocket and inspected it. It was about the size of a silver dollar and very thick. It looked like a piece of iron with something carved into it; a design I had never seen before. As I was looking at it, my mind wandered, thinking of all the things I had done in the past few months. The old Elena would never do such a thing and that scared me more than anything. If Damon were the one searching for me, he would have done the same thing, but it would have seemed more natural. I had to keep flipping that inner switch when I did things and it was getting harder and harder to flip it back so I could be normal again.

I put the necklace back inside the jacket and put the jacket on the ground. I hoisted myself up on the ledge and pulled myself to my feet. There was a spot on the roof to my left that went a little higher up and could only be reached by standing on the ledge. I pulled myself onto that piece and sat down, my back resting against the metal post that held the sign with the name of the hotel on it. Up here, the wind was blowing a little faster and it whipped at my hair. Had I been human, my nose would have frozen already. I simply sat there, casting my thoughts out to the world hoping that I picked up on any sign of Damon as I watched the horizon until I saw the beginnings of the sun rise.

I knew Tyler was on the roof the moment he came out of the hatch and made his way over to where I was sitting. "Are you coming inside anytime soon?" he asked, from the actual roof.

I sat there for a few more moments before I gave in and jumped to land beside him. I made no other movement indicating that I was ready to go inside. "Stefan in there?"

He shook his head. "No, he said he needed to feed, but that was hours ago." He reached out and took one of my hands in his. "Hey, we got a lead. I thought that was good news?"

I stared at him, knowing full well my eyes were unsettling. Even to him. Ever since I had taken his blood, they had changed color and now they were permanently yellow-green instead of the brown they used to be. When I was in blood lust, instead of going dark without any whites, they just simply glowed. That seemed to be the only effect from drinking his blood. Along with the extra dose of restlessness on the full moon and an almost overwhelmingly constant thirst for fresh blood. "Good news is when I have him back and Klaus is dead," I said in a cold voice and walked to the hatch before letting myself jump into the room rather than using the small ladder.

He closed the hatch behind him and set my jacket down on the chair by the window. "Do you need anything?" he asked as he watched me walk to my room.

"No," I said and shut the door, trying not to slam it as I felt tears filling my eyes. My hands flew up to my throat where my locket and Katherine's old ring always hung. I had taken Katherine's old ring from Damon when mine was missing and hadn't given it back to him. Every time I looked at it, it reminded me that if I hadn't taken it, I would be able to find him right now. On the verge of break down, I flipped the switch so I wouldn't have to feel the pain of losing him. I straightened and rolled my shoulders before shedding my clothes and stepping into the bathroom for a shower.


	2. Chapter 2

**Some of you may not like where I'm going to take this, but I promise, it's just a bump in the road for Elena, not permanent :)**

TWO

After a long shower and a very light nap, I wandered out to the shared room and found both boys on the couch watching a movie. They both turned their heads and stood up at my entrance. I smiled lightly and shook my head. "Keep watching your movie," I said as I went to the bar and poured myself a glass of the strongest thing I could find.

Both boys were also accustomed to my mood swings. I could be in good moods when we were alone like this, but it usually didn't last long. It felt familiar, like being at home before I became a vampire. Eventually that made me think of Damon and that killed my mood. It was Christmas and both Stefan and Tyler had given up being with the people they loved back home and were helping me find Damon. I could at least be in a good mood for one day.

They exchanged weary glances before deciding they should listen to me and sat back down. I came to Stefan's side of the couch and held out my hand. "Can I borrow your phone?" I asked. I had left mine at the boarding house, I think.

His brow rose in silent inquiry as he searched his pocket for it and handed it to me. "You okay?"

I nodded, but kept silent as I went back to my room. I set the glass on the nightstand and sat on the bed, propped up against the headboard as I stared at Jenna's number. I gave in and pressed the call button and held the phone up to my ear. "Hello?" came Jenna's voice and I could feel the tears in my eyes at the sound.

"Hi," I said around a tight throat.

"Elena!" her voice was so high pitched I had to the pull the phone away from my ear as she went through a string of words at a decibel even I couldn't follow. "Where the hell have you been?" she yelled in a somewhat normal voice. She had gone from excited to angry in five seconds.

_Searching for Damon_ was what I wanted to say, but I knew she was asking why I didn't call to let her know I was alright. "I'm fine Jenna, I promise."

It was then I realized I had no idea what time it was there. For all I knew, I had woken her up. "We've been so worried about you. Have you...um..."

"I think we got a lead last night, but I'm not sure. Look, I just wanted to call and say Merry Christmas. Will you tell everyone for me?"

"They'll be here later for dinner. Would you like me to call you then?" She was upset because she knew I wanted to hang up.

"No, I don't know what I'll be doing later. Thanks though. I love you," I said and hung up on her before I felt the urge to sob. I sat there, making sure I could hold it together before I worked up the nerve to call John. It went straight to voice mail and I sighed with relief. "Hi. Um, it's Elena." I paused, realizing I didn't know what to say. "I guess I just called to say Merry Christmas," I added and then was silent until the beep sounded in my ear knowing I ran out of time.

I tossed the phone on the other side of the bed and grabbed the glass from the nightstand. I downed the contents and wished I had just brought the bottle. The liquid burned its way down my throat, reminding me of how hungry I truly was. I should have went into the bar last night when I had the chance. Since I was afraid of losing control in my current state, I didn't feed unless I absolutely had to. I knew it was even more dangerous, but it seemed to work for me; however strange that might be. I grabbed the phone in my other hand and went back out to the shared room. I stopped at the sight of Tyler and looked around for Stefan. "He had something to do," Tyler explained.

I arched my brow. "I know you're lying."

His face flushed and he looked back at the television screen. "I'm not supposed to say anything and I would appreciate it if you kept out of my head."

"Did you give him your phone?" I asked after a moment of consideration before grabbing the bottle and sitting on the couch.

"Yeah. I think it's about to run out of juice though," he said and smiled at me. "Who did you call?"

"Ghostbusters," I said flatly, eyes glued to the screen, but I was smiling. He laughed, a sound that was uncommon to my ears after all this time. "Jenna. I just wanted to hear her voice again. Then I called John."

"Why?"

I shrugged. I didn't have an answer for that right now. I took a deep drink from the bottle and smirked as Tyler pulled it away from me and helped himself. "Please tell me that he didn't go shopping," I said, staring at him in the way girls do to play up the innocence to get what they want. I was getting better and better at that.

"Not exactly," he said which made my smile vanish and I narrowed my eyes at him in return. "No more questions."

"What are you watching?" I asked, just to see what he would do at another question.

He shook his head, but laughed again as he handed the bottle back to me. "I'm not really sure, but it's the only thing on that doesn't involve Christmas and mushy feelings."

I took a second to listen to what was going on and shook my head. "They're not even speaking English."

He looked at me with a raised brow. "Got any better ideas?" His eyes flashed with want and the images I got from him seemed to go hand in hand with his expression. As he looked at me more intently, his mood changed to concerned. "When was the last time you fed?" My eyes darkened and I looked away from him. "Elena, you need to keep up your strength. I know you have an abundance, but you know what I mean."

I took another long drink before standing up. "I can't explain this to you."

He blocked my path to my room even though he knew I could get around him easily. "Try."

I closed my eyes and played absently with the necklaces I wore, the medallion now one of those adorning my chest. "Do you remember that night you and Stefan found me in London?"

"Yes," he said, his voice tight as he remembered the carnage I had caused.

"I'm afraid to feed. I don't want that to happen again. I can't ask Stefan to go hunting with me because it's not fair to him and it would be awkward if you came because you don't feed the way we do," I said and opened my eyes to look at him. "And I am _not_ taking your blood again."

He grinned at that for a second before he became serious again. "So what have you been doing?"

I shrugged, "When I can't fight it anymore, I usually go to a bar and get what I need from a drunk."

"And that's not dangerous?" His eyes were wide and he was thinking I was crazy. Hot, but crazy.

It made me smirk and I shook my head. "It is, but it makes it easier. Like I said, I can't explain it."

I went to push past him, but he grabbed my arm. "This goes against Stefan's orders, but you need to feed before he gets back. And don't ask why," he informed me before I could say anything. "Will you please go get changed?"

I looked down at the robe I had thrown over my underwear and grinned. Not exactly appropriate attire for two hormonal boys, but I hadn't thought about that before hand. "Sure," I said and waited for him to let go of my arm so I could go to my room. I slid past him, our fronts grazing due to the tight space and closed the door behind me gently. Sometimes it was hard to ignore one instinct in particular and it wasn't easy with said hormonal boys around. Especially when they both wanted you and made no attempts to hide it. I kept my distance from Stefan. For one, sometimes he smelled like Damon and it messed with my head. Tyler...smelled like Tyler and for that I grateful. I shook my head to clear my thoughts and headed to my closet.

My wardrobe these days consisted of two to three outfits depending on the leads we had. Needless to say, it didn't take me long to get ready. I had long since done away with make-up and hair products. That was another great thing about being undead. You looked great without make-up and your skin was always free of flaws. My hair, on the other hand, was a different story. It flowed around me in loose, spiral curls that looked good on occasion. It differed each time I got out of the shower and whether or not I used the hotel blow drier. I pulled on jeans and a long-sleeved shirt before heading back out of my room to join Tyler. He was there, handing me my coat, and then we were heading towards the elevator at the end of the hall.

Since it was still Christmas morning, the streets were pretty empty. The bars, fortunately for us, were crowded with people who hated their lives and wanted to drown their sorrows in alcohol. That was unfortunate for them. We walked almost as far away from the hotel as we could so that no one would suspect anything and entered the busiest bar we could find. "You know what would make it less awkward?" he suggested, lowering his lips to my ear.

"What?" I asked as I nudged him back with my elbow.

"If you fed from a girl."

I turned my head to look at him and he was smirking from ear to ear. "I don't even know what to say to that," I muttered and began scanning the crowd for someone who was incapacitated beyond the norm. To my surprise, it wasn't even eleven yet, and almost everyone in here was drunk. Not tipsy, full on drunk.

"It's Christmas. It's our busiest time of the year. That and New Years," a barmaid said as she approached us. Her English was heavily accented with French. "I'm Elsie, what can I get for you?" she asked as she gestured to a table. She had guessed we were Americans from the way we looked, but that thought was mostly directed at Tyler. She was having trouble pinning me down.

Tyler was in heaven as he evenly gazed back and forth between Elsie and I. I shook my head and smiled at her. "Two beers."

"Coming right up," she said and bounced away.

"No," I said instantly to Tyler before he could even open his mouth.

He feigned his hurt look and then sighed. "Alright, then what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to drink a beer, act like a lightweight, and stumble to the bathrooms. You're going to make your way back there and pull me off of my victim if you see any signs of extreme paleness on their part."

"Okay," he said, clearly disappointed.

"Good boy," I said and reached forward to mess with his hair.

This time, his anger was real. He hated it when I did that, but I sat back in my chair, smirking away at him. "Don't do that," he said in a low warning tone just before Elsie returned with our beers. "Thank you," he added to her and she went to take care of some other people who had just walked in.

I did just as I had said. I finished my beer, starting laughing like a tipsy high schooler, and made my way to the bathroom. There was a male and female bathroom with two stalls in each and I was lucky enough that there was someone back here. I sensed one male in the bathroom and headed inside knowing Tyler would be able to follow my scent. The man at the sink looked at me in the mirror. I giggled. "This isn't the girls room," I said and swayed on my feet.

I used one hand to support myself on the wall as he approached me. "American?" His English wasn't very good because his thoughts were in a foreign language I didn't recognize off the top of my head. The leer in his eyes told me everything he was thinking anyway.

He looped an arm around my waist and I pinned him to the wall. He was shocked and I made him look me in the eye. "You will not scream," I told him and after a moment of nothing but blank eyes, he nodded. My fangs slid out and I lodged them in his neck. The blood rolling over my tongue was like a slice of paradise. It soothed the ache in my stomach, but it took away what little control I thought I had. I began pulling large gulps, excess blood running down the corners of my mouth. I felt his body squirm from the pain, but he didn't scream.

I hadn't noticed the door open or shut or the fact that Tyler was standing beside me until he pulled me away from the human. The man dropped to the ground in his weakened state and I looked at Tyler. My fangs were still out; my mouth covered in blood. I saw his nose twitch and his eyes began to change at the intoxicating scent that was fresh blood. Before I knew it, my back was slammed roughly against the wall and Tyler crushed his body tightly against mine to keep me there. His mouth was hot and aggressive on mine; his tongue coated in the blood from my lips and his blood from where my fangs had cut him. His hands slid up and down my sides, running over my breasts from time to time. One of my hands cupped his head to keep him close as the other hand ran up and down his back.

And then the phone in his pocket rang.

We both sprang apart from each other. He fumbled in his pocket and answered the phone as I leaned over the man. His neck was bleeding and I cleaned him with paper towels before putting a few drops of my blood over the wound so he would heal. I looked him in the eyes even though he was groggy and compelled him to forget. He walked out as though he didn't see Tyler and I at all. "Who was that?" I asked, tired of the awkward silence.

"Bonnie calling to talk to Stefan," he said tightly before opening the door for me. Yet another lie.

"We should head back," I said and walked ahead of him the entire way back to the hotel. Once there, I picked up the bottle of booze on the coffee table on my way to my room and slammed the door shut. My good mood for the day was fading quickly.


	3. Chapter 3

THREE

The empty bottle sat on the nightstand as I laid across the bed and stared at the ceiling. There was little light coming through the windows due to the storm clouds in the sky and it was still snowing outside. I lost track of time as I ran though every connection to Klaus that I could make. I heard Tyler flipping through channels and raiding the fridge off and on for something to eat. He even ordered room service at one point and his attempt at French made me smile and feel bad for the man who delivered. When the room seemed to darken, I heard three sets of footsteps out in the hall leading up to the room. One was Stefan's, but the other two were definitely human. I sat up and stared at the door as I heard the three people shuffle into the room and the familiar scent hit my nose. I yanked open the door and stared, wide-eyed, at John and Alaric. "What the hell are you two doing here?" I hissed, very angry at the fact that they were here.

"We came to help," Alaric answered.

"You're supposed to be at home watching out for my family."

"That's exactly why we're here Elena," John spoke up. I lifted my gaze to him and stood straighter. He didn't seem to flinch from my eyes, which was unusual and pleasant at the same time. "In case you forgot, you are part of our family. All of us are here because of you."

His words cut through me like a knife. Not because they hurt, but because I hadn't realized it on my own. "You don't even like Damon." I was determined to be in a bad mood.

He took a few steps forward, closing the distance between us and smiled at me. "But you do. Damon only has you to depend on while you have all of us." Stefan looked at the ground the moment John said those words. "If you had told us what you were planning on doing, we could have come up with a plan and executed the search better. Instead, you just took off and you're lucky these two found you before you did something stupid."

Alaric was nodding in agreement. "We've been doing a lot of research back home and we found something that might interest you. It's from Isobel's files."

My eyes were still stuck on John. "You made the hatred everyone have for each other turn into something good for your sake. You created a family and I'll be damned if I let you try and destroy that."

I took a step back. "Now you're going to be paternal?" I snapped. My eyes softened up a bit at his reaction and I shook my head. "I'm sorry, I'm just worn out."

He hugged me to him. We'd hugged before, but this time it seemed like the most natural thing in the world. "I know, but we will find him."

I nodded against his chest and pulled myself from him before I had the chance to think too much about his heartbeat. I looked at Alaric and smiled apologetically. "I think we found out something last night too," I said as I sat down on the couch, keeping my distance from Tyler. Stefan caught the sudden change in behavior, but said nothing about it. "We've been collecting bits and pieces about vampire underground society and we were able to talk to a human working for one of them." I pulled the medallion out from beneath my shirt and unclasped the chain it shared with Katherine's ring. Instead of tossing it to them, I used my telekinesis to deliver it to them. John reached up to grab it with awe clear on his face. "I searched his mind and the woman who gave this to him is Anya Sorkinov. She was definitely a supernatural being, but I couldn't tell if she was a vampire or not."

John and Alaric exchanged glances before opening the file folder Alaric had tucked under his arm. "What's funny is Isobel knew her too," he said as he held it out. I used my ability again to retrieve the folder and looked at its contents. "It doesn't say what she is either, but I guess we'll track her down and find out for ourselves."

I took a moment to eye him suspiciously. "Does Jenna know you're here? I talked to her earlier and she didn't seem to know."

"She's not happy about it, but she knows," he returned and I was relieved that he was telling me the truth.

I met Stefan's eyes from where he sat at one of the chairs on either side of the TV in front of the windows. This room had a lot of seating. John and Alaric were sitting on the love seat near Tyler's side of the couch. _Thank you for bringing them here_ I told him.

He inclined his head. _I know you don't want them to slow you down, but you work better with them around._

I smiled and looked at the two of them examining the medallion. It was comforting to know that they were here even if it wasn't the best of situations. I went back to looking over the file. Anya Sorkinov lived in Russia. Not that her name wasn't a dead giveaway. It had a place to contact her at accompanied by an address, but it wasn't residential. That was the only information Isobel had on her other than a statement in the upper right corner that read; knows information about Originals. I passed the envelope to Stefan who read it and then I transferred it to Tyler. "This looks familiar," Alaric said after five minutes of turning the piece of metal over and over in his hands. "I can't think of where I've seen it though. Did you see anything other than Anya?" he asked me.

I shook my head. "No, I usually only get one reading per item. I might if I concentrate hard enough, but I haven't tried." They were giving me that _and why not_ look, but I didn't have an answer for them. I was afraid of what I might find. I heard two stomachs rumbling with hunger and I looked at both of them. "Look, this can wait until tomorrow. You've had long flights and I know you're hungry."

"I could eat," Tyler said and stood up with John and Alaric.

"Would you like to come?" John asked me and Stefan.

We shook our heads at the same time. "I'm not really in the mood to be social," I said and smiled weakly. "Have fun and be careful when you offer to pay, Tyler eats like an animal."

He grinned at me before we both looked away as we remembered the events from earlier. We exchanged good-byes and soon enough, it was just Stefan and I. "Did I miss something?" he asked.

"No," I answered. He didn't believe me and I didn't care. "I do have something to talk to you about though. Before I say anything, I need you to understand that I'm not calling you weak."

He instantly knew where I was going with this. "Understood."

"I know you're still struggling just a little with the urge to feed on human blood, but have you ever thought about trying it again? I need you to be your strongest if you're going to help me," I said and couldn't help but feel like I had worded it completely wrong.

"Elena, I've thought of that too, but you've seen first hand what can happen."

I didn't know what else to say, so I nodded and changed the subject. "So this is why Tyler's been lying to me all day?"

He smiled, "Yes. I wanted to surprise you and to be honest, I thought you'd be a little happier, but you came around."

I nodded again. "I just don't want anyone else to worry about."

He lifted my chin up so he could see my eyes and he tilted his head to the side. "Did you have Tyler's blood again?"

I started to say no and then realized that would be a lie. "A few drops I think. Why?"

"Your eyes are glowing."

My eyes widened in alarm at that. "What? No one said anything!"

"I barely noticed it. I don't think it's noticeable to the human eye," he said quietly and dropped his hand. "Mind if I ask what happened?"

I stood there, contemplating whether or not I should tell him and then gave in and did it in the end. I started from my conversation with Tyler before we left and ended it with leaving the bar. I didn't need to tell him I was in the room brooding all day because that was nothing out of the ordinary. I sank down on top of the back of the couch and buried my head in my hands. "I'm supposed to be looking for Damon and I end up kissing Tyler. What's wrong with me?"

"Elena, it was the bloodlust, not you."

"That's like saying I beat my wife because the alcohol made me do it," I snapped as I looked up at him. He was close and I could smell him. I inhaled deeply, savoring the scent, even if it was slightly wrong. I stood up and moved away from him. "You smell like him."

He tried to lighten the mood by looking offended. "That's not good."

I smiled lightly, even if it didn't reach my eyes. Eyes that I averted the moment they met his green ones. "I'll be up on the roof," I said and went up the steps, closing the hatch as easily as I could before taking my spot at the ledge. I heard him follow me, obviously ignoring the fact I wanted to be alone, and wrapped his arms around me. I hesitated for a second and then relaxed against him, snuggling even closer in the warmth of his embrace. "I only have five months to find him. It's been almost seven and we've come up with nothing."

He stroked my hair that was quickly becoming wet with snowflakes. "We will find him."

Standing here like this transported me to the first day I had met him. When we had bumped into each other when I came out of the men's room at school. It had earned a good laugh at the party a few nights later. Until Jeremy found Vickie in the woods after being attacked by... And before I knew it, I was sobbing, clinging to Stefan because I could feel my legs buckling. He eased us both down to the snow covered ground and held me across his lap, letting me cry on his shoulder.


	4. Chapter 4

FOUR

Three days later we were checking into a smaller hotel on the outskirts of Moscow. The address that I had was in a town maybe an hour outside the city and this is as close as we could get without staying at a bed and breakfast. After a mild argument, we had gotten three rooms. One for John and Alaric; Tyler and Stefan; and I was by myself. As I went to my room I kind of wished that they had brought Bonnie with them and after a moment of reconsideration, I was glad that they didn't. There was a knock at my door and I opened it to Tyler. I let him in and closed the door behind him. "Yes?"

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry."

"It wasn't your fault. You could smell the blood and I was in bloodlust," I said, somewhat repeating Stefan's words from the hotel in France. "I'm sorry about how I acted towards you after."

"Just so you know, I'm completely aware that you love Damon and I'm not trying to do anything to change that."

I smiled lightly as I looked up at him. "I know. It's over and done with," I said and moved to sit on the bed.

"Alright, well, aside from apologies, I came here to tell you that Alaric, John, and I are going to go eat. I know you haven't fed since that night and I'm here to tell you that you need to feed."

"I will," I assured him.

He wasn't sure whether or not he should believe me, but he nodded and went to open the door. Stefan was about to knock on the other side and they slipped past each other. "They're going to get something to eat."

I nodded, "Tyler just told me."

He stood there for a moment, staring at the ground, raking a hand through his hair before he spoke again. "I've been thinking about what you said."

"And?"

He nodded. "You're right, I need to be stronger if I'm going to be any help. I'm pretty sure I can control it."

"That's half the battle; admitting that you're ready," I said and stood up.

He opened the door for me. "Come on," he said and followed me outside. "Where to?" he asked.

I shrugged and scanned the area. There weren't any woodland ares close by, but there were a lot of parks this far out of the city center. "You pick," I suggested.

He took my hand and the moment we touched, he took off, pulling me with him. When we stopped, we were in a dense forest somewhere far outside of the city limits. I looked at him quizzically. "We're not hunting animals," he assured me and I shrugged before following him up a hill. On the other side, we could see a small town somewhat like Mystic Falls and between us and the inhabitants there was a park. We wandered down and since it was pretty late, we didn't have to worry about children. Our feet crunched under the fresh snow and we stopped as we spotted a couple getting pretty heated on one of the benches.

"I take it that's our meal," I said, nodding in their direction. Even though it was quiet, we were still far enough away that they wouldn't hear us. Stefan simply nodded and we began stalking our prey. If they had been alone in a bar or some other public establishment, I would have charmed my way into feeding, but the only way to prevent them from screaming out into the night was to simply attack. We sped forward and in seconds I had the girl wrapped in my arms with my fangs lodged in her throat. I kept one hand over her mouth to prevent her from screaming and as I looked over, I saw Stefan in the same position. When she became too weak to fight back, I let her go and she dropped to the ground. "That's enough," I said to Stefan who was still feeding on the male.

He ignored me and kept drinking. I could tell that the man was struggling to breathe and he was beginning to fight again meaning his life was almost over. I surged forward and tore Stefan away, throwing him a few yards away. I shoved the man down and went to check on Stefan. He was licking his fingers, wiping blood from his mouth, but he was otherwise okay. He wasn't going to attack again. I put a few drops of my blood into each wound on the couple, compelled them to forget and go home, and then went back to Stefan's side. "Thank you," he said in a strangled voice.

I nodded stiffly as I pulled him to his feet. "You're a step in the right direction you know. You didn't fight me and you didn't immediately come back for more. That's progress," I said, trying not to let the blood make me giddy.

"It's not going to work if we keep putting it off until the last moment. It's dangerous."

"What do you suggest we do about it?"

"One person every other night. No more near starvation," he said flatly.

I considered it for a moment and then nodded. "Alright, sounds fair. I don't think we should hunt together at all times."

"Why?"

"For a while it will work, but after that you need to be able to feed on your own to help you get over the urge to kill. If you constantly need someone to watch out for you, you're never going to get control."

He put one hand on my face and stroked my cheek with his thumb. "Why didn't you suggest this the last time?"

"I wasn't a vampire then," my voice came out harsh as I stepped back, trying not to think on the fact that Stefan's going off the deep end had led me to Damon in the first place.

That thought must have shown on my face because his face softened. "Sorry," he mumbled and cleared his throat. "We should go back." I nodded in agreement and we took off; speeding through the oncoming storm and getting back to the hotel in a matter of five minutes. Our entire trip had probably taken the amount of time the other three had taken to get the restaurant.

"How do you feel?" I asked as we rode the elevator like normal people.

He shrugged as the door opened and a family of five joined us. I watched him intently through the corner of my eyes and was surprised to see he looked relaxed and completely normal. It left me feeling strange inside, but I smiled. "I'm fine Elena, relax," he assured me and put his hand over mine.

We walked from the elevator to my room since it was the first one we came to. I used the keycard to open the door and turned to face him again, vaguely noticing his hand was still in mine. "I'm proud of you."

"Why?"

"Because if you can control it after this one feeding..." even as I said it, I realized something. "You've been feeding from humans since you found me haven't you?" I pulled my hand from him and stepped back.

He looked around the hall before following me into my room and closing the door. "That night in London, Tyler and I cleaned up your mess and there was so much fresh blood that I couldn't control it. Tyler was helping himself and I was jealous so I had a taste, and then another, and then another. I wanted to tell you, but I thought you would worry about me and I wanted your focus to be on nothing but Damon."

I felt guilty. It was my fault he was drinking human blood. That was twice now. "I should have noticed the difference."

"You were distracted."

I laughed somewhat maniacally and turned away from him. "So saying no when I asked the first time was because...?"

"Because I didn't know how you would handle it."

I nodded and thought it over. He was telling me the truth and for that I was grateful. "Well, I know now," I said lightly.

I turned to look at him again and his lips were curved into a smile. "I'm sorry I had to keep this from you," he returned in a barely there whisper as he reached forward for my hands. My fingers brushed the ring on his fingers and my eyes went wide as I relived the day he had attacked me at the Grill on graduation night. I felt my face change, my fangs indenting my bottom lip as I grabbed him by the throat and threw him against the wall. His feet were dangling from the ground and the wall behind him had cracked from the force I used. "Elena!" he hissed as he tried to pry my hands off of him.

As the vision faded, I realized what I was doing and snatched my hand away as though it burned. He stumbled as he landed before getting his footing. "You should go," my voice was hoarse and I had turned away from him.

"Elena-"

"Get out!" I yelled, balling my fists at my side. It took a second before I heard the door open and close and then I was alone. I locked the door and went to take a shower before going to bed for the night.

* * *

The next day, the five of us navigated the city in the rental car John had gotten. I had the address and after plugging it into the built in GPS unit, we sat back and drove. John was driving, I was riding shotgun, leaving Alaric, Tyler, and Stefan in the backseat. Luckily for them, the car was on the larger side so they weren't all squished together. We had a long ways to go before our destination and we made sure the three that needed to eat had done so prior to driving. The guys struck up a conversation just to keep the car from being silent. I looked out the window and tuned them out. I was much more interested in the scenery then I was in what they had to say.

After an seventy-five minutes of sitting in the car, we finally arrived at the location we sought. We all filed out of the car and stretched our legs. "This is a cafe," I said, looking around at the quaint town we were standing in. It was like something straight out of a history book which I was sure Alaric was having a heart attack over. Under different circumstances I would have been more than happy to explore the town with him.

There were a few people sitting on cast iron chairs out front sipping at their coffee and reading a book. "Let's go in," John said and we headed inside.

The interior was gorgeous. It was rustic and modern without looking cheesy. The marble countertops gleamed from the windows letting light in from behind the counter. It was still stormy grey outside, but the sun was bright then it had been the past few days. "Wow," I breathed as I looked around.

The boys were just as enthralled as I was and we were too busy looking around that we didn't notice anyone else enter the room until they spoke. "I was wondering when you would find me," came a voice that sounded sweeter than pure sugar. She had a slight Russian accent behind her words and that glow I had noticed in my vision was even more noticeable in person. I was captivated by her; to the point where I couldn't form any real thoughts. She definitely was not a vampire, but she was something of the supernatural world.

"You- You know us?" I finally managed to get out.

She inclined her head. "You seek information on Klaus." Her blue eyes flickered over each of us in turn. "You came faster then I expected."

I shook my head and stared at her. "You were expecting us?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because Klaus has something of yours," she answered, holding my gaze calmly with hers. "To save us time, I know his favorite places and I know his weaknesses."

I gaped at her. "H-how do you know all of this."

She smiled and though her face was beautiful, the action left me feeling grim. "Because," she started and then her eyes flashed with an unidentifiable emotion. "Klaus is my brother."


	5. Chapter 5

**a/n: if something doesn't add up, let me know. If not then we're good :)**

FIVE

Her words repeated in my head; unable to sink in. "How is that possible?" Stefan asked for me. "He's an Original."

She stared at him as though he was an idiot. "All things are born into this world. They cannot appear out of thin air," she said, even though that graceful smile seemed frozen onto her face. She called something out in another language I assumed to be Russian and a small redheaded girl came out from the back to take her place behind the counter. "Follow me," she said to us and beckoned for us to follow her to the back. There was a narrow stairway that led up. A door took the place of the landing and she opened it, gesturing for us to enter.

Her invitation was unspoken, but it worked. We sat in the spacious living room which was decorated as ornately as the cafe downstairs. She got each of us something to drink and then took her place in what could only be described as a throne. It was an oversized chair that had a back that was taller than the person sitting in it and it was gold. "We know you don't have to tell us anything, but we need to know how Klaus- How he has a family," Alaric said.

She tipped her head in my direction. "This is all because of Katherine isn't it?" she asked with distaste.

I nodded. "Sort of."

"I feel bad for you Elena. Anyone that has to share the looks of that bitch is to have an unfortunate life." I bit my tongue to prevent myself from asking how she knew my name. "Since the day he laid eyes on her, he wanted her. Even if her warlock tried to keep them apart. He told me she was going to be his queen."

"What is it with that title?" I asked.

She grinned. "He's the only one that uses it. It gave Katherine great pleasure to have that title in front of her name." She really hated Katherine. She was quickly becoming my favorite person in the room. "Klaus likes to pride himself on being cruel and bloodthirsty, but I think she bested him in that department and he was too in love with her to hurt her when she left him."

I nodded. "That much I could tell."

She gave me a knowing smile before taking a sip of water from her glass. "Shall I start from the beginning?"

"Yes," came a chorus of male voices.

"We aren't as old as people think we are. We weren't born in the ice age or when the first humans walked the Earth. Even if Klaus tells people he is; he's lying. We were born after the world began to become more populated. It was a small village located somewhere here in Russia. Our father was a shaman and our mother was a woman abandoned from another village. It was a time where people believed in nature and nothing else. There were gods, of course, but they weren't feared as they are in today's society." She let that sink in while she took another sip at her drink.

I sniffed and caught the scent of something that was anything but water. It wasn't alcohol either which had me confused. With each sip, the glow in her skin brightened, but from the looks on the faces of the boys, I was the only one who saw this little change. I narrowed my eyes at Stefan who didn't notice my look at all. I turned back to Anya as she continued her story, trying to ignore the warning my body was receiving.

"I came out first and the village celebrated my birth. They had hoped the first born would be a boy, but oh well." There was definitely a bitter hint to that sentence. "Then Klaus came out and the village fell silent. The midwife delivering us shrieked and nearly dropped him. My father caught him, but he began to whisper prays. They were terrified because my brother had been born a demon. To bring a monster into the world meant death of the child and the mother. They tried to kill both of them right then and there, but my brother was exactly what they said he was. Even though he was brand new to the human realm, he was powerful and strong. He latched on to the midwife that came at him with a knife and in seconds she dropped to the ground with no blood left in her. It struck more fear into the people than his birth had and they stopped the attacks. They spared my life because someone said I was an angel."

That's what it was. It explained the glow in her skin and the perfect aura that was constantly oozing out of her. I still found it odd that I was the only one seeming to have made this connection. "Are you?" I asked aloud, trying to get everyone on the same page. "An angel like they said?"

She smiled faintly and continued her story as though I hadn't said a word. "He killed as an infant several times and I was the only one that could stop him. The village feared him, but they feared their deaths more. As a child, he learned to control his urges with my help and began to integrate himself in society. As time passed, the people still remembered what we were, but no one talked about it. His thirst for blood was undeniable and I helped him anyway that I could."

"Wait, you said you were born. Like infants. But you're an adult," Tyler stated. Even I was a little confused by that.

She nodded. "We lived through our teenage years and ventured out into the world. When people of that time died in their early adulthood, ours seemed to simply halt. One day we noticed that people were aging and we were not. Eventually the people who knew what we were passed on into the next life and we were free to come back as we pleased just to attempt a life of normalcy. 'Vampire' was not a word until relatively recent times, but demon is about as old as time itself. It is true, he has been around for thousands of years and his blood is lethal to other people of supernatural origin, but he can be killed. As much as he hates to admit, my brother does have a weakness."

"And that would be?"

She glared at me and I was taken aback. It was the first time she looked unhappy. "Why should I tell you how to kill my brother?"

"You said he's a demon. Killing him would just release the demon inside and he would simply go back to wherever he came from and wait for the next body to take over. Right?"

She hesitated, taking another sip of her drink and then smiled. "You are much smarter than your doppleganger." My lip curled at the thought of Katherine, but I nodded. "She came here not long ago, asking me how to kill him too."

"She did?" Alaric asked in disbelief.

"Her and her descendent. Isobel, I believe was her name."

All of us exchanged glances at that. "Why would they want to know that?"

"Apparently, when she played her games, it was to show Klaus how creative she was and she always went back to him. When she met the Salvatore brothers, she truly fell in love." Her eyes fell hard on Stefan and he looked away. "When it ended, she ignored Klaus; treated him like nothing. He was angry and told her that if she didn't return to him, he would kill her men."

"But he didn't." _Obviously_, I chided myself.

"She told him she needed time to grieve and he allowed her this. When he found her again, it was with Isobel. They were planning on doing something to your town and he was angry that she was upset and hadn't come to him. What he told was that the Salvatore's had moved on and Katherine was furious because she thought they were hers." She smiled at me. "I can't imagine why they fell for you." Her tone was sarcastic and I stood up, my fangs threatening to come out.

"Do not compare me to her," I said in a level voice. "I'm stronger than I look and you don't know what other tricks I have up my sleeves."

"Actually, I do."

My eyes widened in surprise as she stood up to look me in the eye. "Klaus heard of your abilities from things he had picked up and he no longer wanted Katherine. Of course, she and her descendent had already been here asking me how to get rid of Klaus so they could continue their plan. It never occurred to them that he would be reborn again in time. That was very considerate of you."

I smiled wearily. "I do what I can."

"I heard you killed her twice."

"Three times," I said, instantly feeling better and my smile was real this time.

She returned my smile with her bright, beaming one. "Good girl." She sat back down and I did the same. "As I was saying, he found out about what you can do and he decided that he wanted you for himself. He was planning on taking you, but like Katherine, he liked his games too."

"Do you know where he is?"

"I might."

We stared at each other and I realized the boys were watching us intently. For all we were concerned, they weren't here at all. "What do you want in exchange for his whereabouts?" I found myself asking.

She moved to rest her chin on her hand as she leaned to one side, elbow propped up on the arm of the chair. "That's a good question. I'll have to think about that."

I had the feeling we were being dismissed. I stood up, displaying my strength as I pulled the boys to their feet as well without lifting a finger. "Thank you," I said and held out my hand to her.

Her smile was a coy one as she wrapped her fingers around mine and shook my hand. "I will contact you when I have come up with a suitable price." I nodded and stepped away from her, leading the rest of my group to the stair case. As we got to the door that led outside, she said something to make us stop. "White ash wood."

I turned to look at her. "What about it?"

"It's his weakness. It's the one thing that can kill him," she said, smiled, and then disappeared down the hall.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: to those of you that wanted it, here you go :) but this is probably going to be the last of it...and I'm not really a drinker so my apologies for the really bad drunk talk.**

SIX

My head was bursting with excitement at the fact that I was close to finding Damon. She didn't say she would help us, but she had given us his weakness. That had to count for something. I had shot out of the car and ran up to my room before any of them had the chance to stop me and ruin my mood. I paced at the foot of the bed, trying to calm myself out of this little spell I was in. I reached for my phone to call Bonnie, to tell her the good news, and stopped as I realized I had no phone. My smile faded and it sank in. My best friend wasn't here and I needed her. I wanted to share how excited I was and I knew she would feel the same way unlike the boys who would just tell me there was more to it then that. I sighed and sank down on the edge of the bed. I laid back and my gaze flickered to the phone on the nightstand.

My sudden bad mood vanished as I moved quickly and began dialing information to call Bonnie's number for me. "You better pick up, John's paying for this," I muttered to myself and smiled as I envisioned the look on his face when we checked out of the hotel.

"Hello?" came her voice, throughly confused.

"Bonnie!" I cried out, tears of happiness stinging my eyes. I missed her and it hit me when she spoke. The pain of her not being here was almost as bad as Damon's being gone.

I could tell she moved the phone away from her ear to check the number and then returned it to her ear. "Where the hell are you calling me from?"

"Russia."

"What?" she screamed and I laughed. "My mom is going to kill me!"

I hadn't smiled like this in so long, I thought my face was going to crack. "I haven't spoken to you in six months. I've been searching for Damon through means that could get me killed and you're worried about the phone bill?" It was priceless. "Besides, John's footing the bill."

"Yeah, thanks for letting me know you're alive once in awhile," her tone was harsh and I felt a little guilty. "I'm just glad Stefan and Tyler found you."

Then it hit me. "You sent them after me didn't you?"

There was a brief moment of silence. "Yes."

"Thank you," I said and I could hear her small intake of breath over the phone. Obviously not the response she was expecting to hear from me.

"Stefan has been worried sick about you and you calling me is abnormal. What happened?" She was keeping her voice light, sensing that my calling was a good thing, not wanting to spoil it for me.

The words flowed from my mouth like water as I told her everything that had happened since the moment I touched the medallion. I didn't censor anything, knowing she would be mad if I had. Luckily, I didn't need to breathe because I wasn't sure that I could have if I needed to. "Anya told us Klaus' weakness. We can defeat him once we find him," I concluded.

She didn't say anything, and I could sense her brain working to process everything I had just told her. Her next statement reminded me why she was my best friend. "You kissed Tyler? Bloodlust or not; what were you thinking?"

I grinned and shook my head. "He started it."

She laughed on her end. "Okay, back to the point. Do you think she's going to tell you where to find Damon?"

"I can tell she likes me and she said she would ask something of me in return. I'll give her anything she wants Bonnie if it means I can bring him home."

"I know. All I'm saying is, be careful okay? She may want something that you can't give her."

I wanted to tell her again that _anything_ she asked for I would give her no matter what, but I knew that wasn't exactly true. I wasn't about to kill anyone that I knew to get him back. I thought of something then. "Hey, can't you, or the coven just scry for him?"

"Really?" she said in that tone that said 'I can't believe you just asked me' sort of way. "You don't think I haven't tried that already? Elena, I've been trying every night. I would have contacted you the minute I found something."

I sighed. "I know, it was just wishful thinking."

"Look, I don't want to hang up, but my mom really is going to kill me at the fact that you're calling me from Russia. I love you, you know that right?"

"Of course. Love you too," I said and we both hung up at the same time. I put the phone back in the cradle and went to open the door for Alaric who was approaching it. He looked a little stunned when he saw me waiting, but didn't comment. "What can I do for you?"

"Just wanted to see if you needed anything," he said, turning around to look at the crack in the wall from where I had pounced on Stefan. "What happened there?"

"It was there when we got here," I lied. "No, I don't need anything. Thanks though."

"Alright, well, we're probably going to head out to get some food."

"I'll come with you," I said and he looked taken aback.

"You will?"

"I could use a drink and I feel like celebrating the fact that we are one step closer to finding him."

"Don't you think you're getting ahead of yourself?"

I glared at him and he put his hands up in mock surrender. "Just let me get it out of my system on my own. Are you going back anytime soon?" I asked as I followed him out into the hall.

"I took the second semester off. I told them I had family problems and needed to go back home until they were resolved. They were more than happy to give me the time I needed."

"They were?" I asked, throwing a suspicious glance his way as we got into the elevator.

"Pearl helped," he admitted and I gave him a light smile.

John and Tyler were in the lobby, leaving me to wonder where Stefan went to. "He didn't want to come," Tyler said as if reading my face. "Why do you?"

"To get out of the room. Restless and confined don't usually mix well," I said as I looped an arm through his and pulled him outside. He was puzzled by my actions, but decided to go with it anyway. I knew I was getting ahead of myself, but for the first time in six months, I was feeling like my old self and I deserved it. _I will find you_, I vowed silently, casting my thoughts out to Damon. I walked with Tyler to the car and slid in beside him in the backseat. As John drove, I wondered why I had never tried to use my broadcasting abilities to find him. I shoved it away for now; something to do later once I talked to the guys about helping me find a witch. I smiled at Tyler, a real smile, and he winked before I looked out the window to take in the view that was Russia.

* * *

Normally my liver could repair itself quickly, leaving me almost incapable of getting drunk. Tonight, I had successfully overcome the healing and was beyond intoxicated; on the verge of collapsing at any given moment. If Tyler hadn't helped me to my room, I would have passed out in the lobby on one of the couches. I had discovered one upside to being this wasted; I couldn't hear any thoughts, not even Tyler's when I was in direct contact with him. I shrugged out of his grasp and dropped my coat to the floor. I tripped over my other foot as I walked to the bathroom and he caught me around the waist. "Oops!" I giggled.

"Elena, stop. Just lay down," he insisted and tried to get me on the bed.

I pulled away from him and laughed as I turned to face him. "You're gunna have ta try harder than that to get me to bed with you," I said with a grin as I waggled my finger at him. "Shame on you."

He was serious as he watched me with concern. I pulled my shirt up over my head and struggled with the collar. I ended up smashing into one of the dressers in the room and finally got my shirt off when Tyler pulled me into his arms. "What are you doing?"

"Undressing. Problem?" I asked as I looked up at him through my lashes, trying to appear innocent. He was a little drunk too, that much I could gather from the scent of liquor on his breath. I put my hands on his chest as he tightened his arms around my waist and hauled me to my feet.

"Yes, there is a problem. You're drunk and you're acting stupid. I don't want you to do anything that you'd regret."

I tipped my head back and laughed. "Right, 'cause you're the moral one here."

He squeezed his arms and lifted me abruptly. I let out a little gasping, sobering me a notch, as he threw me onto the bed and landed right above me. His eyes staring into mine. "Not exactly," he breathed and grinned down at me.

I smiled in a lazy kind of way and gripped his shoulders to make sure he stayed where he was. "So what's stopping you?"

The drunken haze that had settled around us, keeping the air light and playful had vanished and was replaced by sheer lust. It was the same vibe that we had experienced in the bar bathroom when we were in France. His eyes were turning into his wolf eyes as he closed the gap and kissed me. He was just as greedy as I was and as much as I hated to admit it, I was a little more aggressive. My nails bit into his skin and he made a sound of arousal through the kiss. I kissed him harder and decided I wanted to show off. I flipped him roughly so that he was on his back, the blankets poofing out at the edges from the sudden rush of air. My hands ran over his chest before running my finger over the buttons and tearing them loose like opening a letter with a knife. My nails raked his chest lightly as his hands slithered up my sides lightly.

I leaned down and kissed his collarbone, the beat of his heart hit my lips and I could hear his blood rushing through his veins. My mouth began to water and I could feel my canines come out. I sat back just a little to look at him and his eyes had gone back to normal, completely aware of the situation he had gotten himself into. He snatched his hands away from me as if I burned him and he sat up immediately, pushing me back on my rear instead of on my knees. "You're drunk."

I put my hand on his chest and shoved him back down, leaning to hover over him in the process. His heart hammered against his skin and I licked my lips, yearning for another taste. "As I recall, you liked your girls with no inhibitions. That's why you went after Vickie right?"

"Elena!" he hissed and tried to sit up.

I wasn't pushing on his chest very hard, but he couldn't move no matter how hard he tried. I glared at him, unleashing the full effects of my eyes and it stilled him in fear. "So why is it any different with me?"

"Because we're looking for Damon. The man you're in love with."

My fangs pressed against my bottom lip as I smirked at him. In one swift movement, I pinned his arms above his head with my free hand and leaned in to nuzzle his throat. The call for blood was stronger than it had been since I had turned. Any other night, it would have frightened me, but tonight, I was in too deep. He groaned involuntarily as my fangs grazed his skin and his hips rose up, pressing his very aroused self against my nether regions. My eyes fluttered with desire as I opened my mouth and bit down. He shuddered with pleasure as I drank from him. My body seemed to have a mind of its own as it ground against him and his was following my lead. Fire coursed through my veins from the taste of him. It was every bit as delicious as I had remembered it to be and I found myself wondering why I hadn't taken blood from him more often. I lifted my head from his neck, amazed that I had been able to stop myself before going too far. I lapped up the excess and then sought his lips. He nipped at my bloodied lips and drew some of my blood as well. I released his hands and pulled my head back from him, exposing my throat. _Do it_, I demanded, forcing the thought at him.

He surged forward, leaving me to question whether or not I had just compelled him nonverbally, and locked his arms around me. We were both sitting with our legs stretched out in front of us. He buried his face into the crook of my neck and licked a few times. His teeth grazed my flesh and I shivered from the feeling. It was different because all of his teeth were razor sharp, instantly drawing blood. Though our lower halves were still fully dressed, our hips kept gyrating and from what I could tell, we were both on the verge of coming. I cried out as he bit down hard. It was not like a vampire bite at all. There was no way to be gentle about it, and yet the pain was still pleasurable. I felt my blood pouring into him leaving me with a head rush from the rapid loss. My eyes half-closed as my head began to bind; his thrusts against me becoming more intense. He pulled his mouth away from my neck and kissed me roughly as we both rode out our releases. We collapsed forward with me on top of him and I could only stare at the wall, feeling the rise and fall of his chest as he panted for air.

"Elena-"

I put two fingers over his lips and shook my head. _Either leave or shut up and sleep_, I demanded and pulled away from him to the edge of the bed, turning my back to him in the process. The tension release and the alcohol allowed me to sleep instantly as I closed my eyes and tried to think about nothing.


	7. Chapter 7

SEVEN

I slid off the bed and frowned when I saw the scarlet drops that splattered the sheets. To the human eye, it wouldn't be that noticeable, to my inhuman ones, it was all I could see. For the life of me, I couldn't think of any reason why there was blood on the bed in the first place. Come to think of it, I wasn't exactly sure how I had made it back to the hotel. I caught Tyler's scent in the room; maybe he had brought me here because I did remember drinking a lot. The pounding in my head was a dead giveaway.

When I turned on the light in the bathroom, I jumped at the sight I saw in the mirror. My hair was a disaster with the ends hardened in places from dried blood. The left side of my neck was unmarred, but there was blood crusted around it, a trail of it ran down the front of my chest, over my collarbone. Not to mention the blood that surrounded my mouth. My features were sharper, to the point where if you were human, you would be able to tell right away that I was not. Strangely enough, that wasn't what scared me. It was the fact that my eyes were glowing. I had gotten used to the yellow-green, but this was insane. The color was so vibrant that it looked like something right off of a cartoon. My tongue touched my lips and I swore under my breath at the taste of Tyler's blood. "Shit," I muttered as the events of last night came rushing back.

I tore the rest of my clothes off and started the shower, turning the water to the hottest that it could be. I scrubbed at my skin, emptying the complementary bottle of soap the hotel provided and by the end of my shower, my skin was raw and it hurt when I put the robe on. I paced the room, trying to figure out what the hell I was thinking when someone knocked on the door. "Elena, it's me," came Stefan's voice. I stood there, debating if I should let him in or not. "Elena?"

I stood behind the door and opened it a crack. "You can't come in right now, but I need a favor."

"What is it?"

"A new outfit and the biggest, darkest pair of sunglasses you can find."

He shifted uncomfortably and I "heard" the moment his eyes saw the drops of blood on the bed. "What happened?"

"Get those things and I will tell you," I said and shut the door on him. He stood there for a few seconds before I heard him walking towards the elevator. _I was drunk_, I kept reminding myself. And we were clothed, so nothing other than kissing happened. I ran my hands through my damp hair and groaned, knowing that was a technicality. I continued to pace the room until Stefan came back and knocked at my door again. I let him in, but kept my eyes glued to the floor. "Thank you," I said as I grabbed the bag from his hand and rushed into the bathroom.

I pulled the clothes out of the bag and laid them out on the counter. I shrugged out of the robe and stepped into the underwear he had picked out. Under different circumstances I would have been a little worried that he still remembered my size and my style. When I pulled on my jeans, I winced a little. Though my skin had healed, it was still tender. The shirt was three-quarter sleeves and made of cotton. It was a dark teal blue with a swirl pattern in black and silver. I noticed there were shoes at the bottom of the bag and I pulled them on. They were black boots with no heal and came up to mid-calf. I was very glad he didn't get heals, even if I could run in them, it wasn't something I liked to do. As I put on the sunglasses, I did a double take in the mirror. I looked like something out of an Angelina Jolie movie but in this case I was the badass.

"Thank you," I said as I came back out to the bedroom.

He nodded. "Now what happened?" I opened my mouth to speak and then closed it. I really did not want to talk about it. "Those sunglasses may fool humans, but I can see your eyes glowing behind them. Judging from the scent in the air, Tyler was here last night."

"Yes," I said, not bothering to hesitate.

He was expecting me to lie and my blunt honesty had taken him aback for a moment. "You drank from him again." It wasn't a question. He stared at me and when it was clear I wasn't going to elaborate, he pressed on. "Why?"

"I went out with them last night and I had way too much to drink and that's not an excuse, but one thing led to another and..." my voice trailed off as I nodded to the blood. "Things just got out of hand."

"Damon is-"

"We didn't sleep together," I assured him. "Things just got a little messy."

He was having trouble believing me, but he knew I wouldn't lie to him about something like this. "Are you okay?" he asked after a few heavy minutes of silence.

I nodded. "Just anxiously waiting to hear from Anya."

"What if she asks for some kind of sacrifice? Have you thought of that?"

"Yes."

"He's her brother. I don't think she's going to let you get close enough to kill him. What's to say she hasn't alerted him already?"

"Did you happen to notice the glow in her skin?" I wasn't exactly trying to be subtle about the change in subject.

"No," he said in that tone that said he was trying to remember it. "No," he repeated with more finality.

"It was. Her drink was sweet, not water. Did you notice that too?" He shook his head. "Klaus is a demon; that makes her an angel," I said, making the connection for him.

He shook his head in disagreement. "I thought of that too, but I know it's wrong."

"Why?"

"She looks like I would expect an angel to look, but there were some things in her mannerisms that said there was something dark beneath that perfectness. I think she's just better at hiding her inner demon than Klaus."

I let that thought settle in and I nodded. "I guess we'll find out when she comes to me with her offer," I said and went to open the door.

"Where are you going?" he asked as he followed me out into the hall.

"I can't spend my days in the room with nothing to do while I wait. I'm going to get a book or something," I said, heading to the elevator.

"Want some company?"

"No thanks," I said as I got in the car and looked at him. "I just want you to keep what I told you to yourself."

"I can do that," he said as the door closed. As I moved to the exit in the lobby, I realized I would have to get a coat while I was out because mine was still on the floor in my room. Everyone was looking at me strangely as I walked though the falling snowflakes and into the crowded streets, trying to find the nearest clothing store.

* * *

When I got back to the hotel, I was stopped by the receptionist. "Hi," I said as I looked at her. I was surprised she had approached me because I had spent the last hour getting used to people going out of their way to avoid me and stare at me when they thought I wasn't looking. I had heard many people's private conversations and thoughts as I passed and they were both frightened and enthralled by my heightened features. It made me more confident and more cautious at the same time.

She was one of the few that spoke flawless English. Granted, she was from England, but it was rare in this part of the city. "I'm sorry to bother you, but it's my job to inform everyone about the party we're having on Wednesday night."

"What's so special about Wednesday?" I asked.

She smiled. "New Years Eve."

I stiffened as I thought about how I spent my last New Years Eve. I had been on the Spanish Steps with Damon as everyone in the streets celebrated the holiday. I shook myself back into the present and straightened. "Of course."

"We're throwing a party in the lobby for all of our guests. We just have to let everyone know because of the noise level. Not that you'll hear anything on your floor, but-"

I smiled and cut her off. "Thank you for telling me. I'll be sure to pass it along to my friends," I assured her and she stepped aside to let me onto the elevator.

I wanted so much to take off the glasses because even though I could see perfectly, everything was a few shades darker and it was beginning to get annoying. Not to mention the stares that came from every direction from wearing sunglasses indoors. "Nice shades," Tyler said as he came out of his room with an empty ice bucket in his hands. He wasn't being his usual cocky self and his thoughts were full of uncertainty. "What the hell happened last night?" he asked, dropping his voice so passerby's couldn't hear us.

I jerked my head towards the door and pushed it open. "Get inside," I demanded and he followed me.

He set the bucket down on the floor by the door and just stared at me. "I woke up in here, blood all over both of us, and-" he stopped, trying to word the next part right. "There was definitely evidence of something else. I know we had a lot to drink..." his eyes met mine and his shone with regret. "Whatever I did, I'm sorry."

My lips twitched into a small smile and I shook my head. "You didn't do anything, Tyler. Everything that went on was because of me. You were trying to get me to just go to bed and I kept throwing myself at you."

His jaw went slack and the regret in his eyes turned to disappointment. "See, why I don't I remember that?"

I grinned and shook my head. "Yes, things got a little out of hand and we both had each other's blood but-"

"I had vampire blood?"

All playfulness was gone instantly. "Yes."

He made an O with his mouth and shifted his feet. "That explains a lot. I've been moving quicker, seeing clearer, and hearing better than I ever thought I could." Then he looked a little mournful and he pouted. "I thought I was getting more powerful."

"Nope, that was all me," I teased.

He grinned and looked at me with concern. "So...what did it do to you?"

"You can't tell?" I asked, looking down.

He gave me a once over and shrugged. "Well, I noticed you look...very inhuman, but I thought that was just me."

"Nope, it's not. I noticed it too and while I was out, people kept shying away from me. The only one who didn't was the receptionist downstairs. She approached me like I was normal." I thought over what I had just said. "Which obviously means she is not."

"So why are you still wearing the shades?" he asked, taking a step forward.

I swallowed around a tight throat and slowly pulled them off of my face. His eyes widened and he stepped back. His jaw nearly hit the floor as he took in the sight of my eyes. "Holy shit," he muttered when he could speak.

I snorted, "You can say that again."

I replaced the sunglasses and he snapped out of his daze. "Have you noticed anything else other than that?"

"Just the enhanced image. I'm really surprised I haven't changed into a wolf yet," I said as I sank onto the edge of the bed. I noticed the droplets of blood still on the sheets and sighed. "We need to get rid of that."

"Rid of what?" he asked.

I looked at him and then back at the bed. "You really don't see the blood stains?"

He stared at the bed and shook his head. "I smell it, but don't see anything. Oh, now I see it," he said as he looked up towards the pillows. "Housekeeping won't notice."

I was going to say something when the phone rang. My brow rose as I cautiously answered it. "Sorry to both you Miss Gilbert, but there's a package waiting for you downstairs," came the receptionist's voice over the receiver.

"Who left it?" I asked.

"I'm sorry, I didn't see. It just appeared on the desk," she replied.

"I'll be right there," I said and hung up. "I think Anya made up her mind," I said as I zoomed out to the elevator with Tyler close at my heels. I pressed the button rapidly and then decided on the stairs. I had to remind myself to walk at a human pace as I left the stairwell and headed to the front desk.

"Here you are," she said as she handed me a padded envelope.

"Thank you, Allorah," I said after glancing at her name tag. I did a double take at her name because it was very unusual. "That's a unique name," I added.

She smiled lightly and I tried to enter her mind to see what made her so unique. Her grey-green eyes widened and I encountered walls of iron blocking me from her thoughts. "Excuse me," she said briskly and practically ran away from Tyler and I.

"What was that about?"

I frowned, trying to figure that out for myself. "She knew I was trying to read her thoughts. She put up a wall to block me out."

His eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"

I nodded and then tore open the envelope. "Whatever, I'll deal with her later. Right now, I need to focus on this," I said and dumped the contents onto the counter. There was a letter and a coin almost exactly like the one I wore around my throat. I read the letter aloud so Tyler knew what it said. "I have made up my mind. I want you to meet me in the spot you will see when you touch the stone." It was signed with her initials and I looked at Tyler before wrapping my fingers around the stone. When I opened my eyes, I put it in my pocket. "Let's go."

"What about the others?" he asked as he began following me.

I sighed and went back to the other receptionist who had taken Allorah's place. "Will you tell Mr. Salvatore that Mr. Lockwood and I have stepped out for a bit?"

She nodded her head and smiled. "Sure," she replied in heavily accented voice and scribbled something down on a notepad.

"Thank you," I said to her and turned to Tyler. "Satisfied, come on," I urged and with that we took off at vampire speed.


	8. Chapter 8

EIGHT

The place I had envisioned was an abandoned building somewhere between the city and the town where we had first met Anya. I wasn't sure how or why I knew exactly where to go but I didn't question it. "Are you sure I should be here?" Tyler asked once we had stopped.

"No," I answered. "Would you mind changing into wolf form?"

He ducked behind some trees and stripped down. I could hear his bones popping and crunching as he changed from one form to another. Before I knew it, he was there, pushing his snout into the back of my knee. _It's surprisingly warmer this way_, he said as we walked into the building to wait for Anya.

To our surprise, she was already there, standing before us. She glanced from Tyler to me and smiled. "I should have clarified to come alone, but I suppose it doesn't matter, you'd just tell him anyway."

I was a little startled that she knew it was Tyler, but on the other hand, I felt stupid for thinking she wouldn't. "You're an angel," I found myself saying.

She inclined her head. "Very good."

"How come they didn't notice it but I did?"

"They notice it in different ways. To them, I am that perfect female. They know I am unattainable and they do nothing about it. They simply stare in awe and do as I say. I'm the embodiment of female prowess." She grinned and stepped forward as if she were about to share a secret with me. "Besides, we all know that women are the smarter of the species."

Tyler let out a little growl. _Not true!_ he whined.

"Yes it is," she replied and I was floored.

"You heard him?" I asked in a small voice.

"I am much like you Elena. I have many talents and my nature is good," she said. Her eyes bore into mine and I could feel myself wanting to take a step forward but I resisted. She grinned at the struggle on my face and toned down the fierceness in her eyes. I took a step back and shook my head. "Why are you wearing sunglasses? It's dark from the storm clouds."

"I need them," I stated.

"Let me see," she demanded and I had no choice but to give in and remove them. Her eyes widened in surprise and she put her hands together in delight. "Now that is power in its greatest form."

"Glowing eyes? How is that powerful?" I questioned, putting the glasses back on, much to her dismay.

"Have you ever heard of a vampire sharing blood with a werewolf?"

"I've heard it was uncommon, but nothing else."

She nodded. "The vampire might ingest the blood of a werewolf on accident, not realizing what their victim is. The vampire then gets violently ill with the urgency to change. There has not been one vampire who has survived the first full moon after ingesting werewolf blood. They always give into the call of the moon and die in the process." She took a step forward. "You, my dear, are extremely special. The fact that you are standing here after many full moons proves it."

"Why me?" I asked lightly.

"Ah, now that is the question isn't it?" she returned and closed the distance between us to cup my jaw. "You just might be the chosen one after all."

"The what?"

She stepped back quickly and I had to blink a few times to refocus my eyes. "I have come up with what I think of as a suitable exchange for Mr. Salvatore's whereabouts. Since I know you will kill my brother in the end." Her eyes were sad for only a second. "I am a Guardian. My job is to hunt and kill the Originals in the order they were brought into this world. It was unfortunate that the first Original was born as my brother. I have failed my duty to humanity and it is time for me to return. I have been waiting for the right person to take my place."

"Let me guess," I said dryly and pointed to myself. "Me, right?"

She nodded solemnly. "You were going to come into your powers whether or not you became a vampire. The fact that you're already going to live forever is just a bonus. Nothing about you will change except that you would now have the right amount of strength that you need to defeat him. You are strong enough to face him as you are, but he has been a fighter since birth. You are not a fighter at all."

I put my hand up. "You're talking like I have no choice about taking over for you in your job."

"This is what you were born for Elena. It is your destiny."

I took another step back and Tyler moved to stand in front of me. His hackles were raised and he was shifting his paws, getting ready for an attack. "There's something you're not telling me."

"You really are smarter than Katherine." She closed her eyes and rolled her shoulders. I took that as a sign that I wasn't going like what she was going to say next. "There are ten Originals. They were born into the world the same way Klaus was but unlike him, there was no one to show them mercy. They are ruthless and have never known kindness. I was put on this earth to destroy them and make humanity safe. I have been called back because I have failed. My love for my brother is unnatural and it was not supposed to happen. I have tried to attack the others, but it proved impossible because I did not follow the order in which they were brought here."

"Why now? Why after all these years are you being recalled? What does this have to do with Damon? Where is he?" I asked, getting angrier by the second because it didn't sound as if she were going to tell me after all.

"I am fading," she said, her eyes filling with sorrow. "My powers have diminished to the point where I can barely keep my brother at bay. If I die without either completing my task or passing it on, the Originals will have free reign on all of humanity. Ever wonder why vampires are just science fiction for the most part? I'm the balance between worlds. When I am gone, there will be nothing to stop them from staying hidden."

It scared me because in that moment I knew she was speaking the truth. I could feel it from where I stood. I began to tremble and even Tyler's ears drooped down to show that he wasn't happy with that knowledge either. "And Damon?"

"Damon was the only way I could get you to find me."

My legs buckled and I fell back against the wall. I felt my head bounce off of it and for a moment I saw stars. "_What?_" I swallowed and turned off my emotions after making sure my legs could support me. "You had Klaus take Damon?"

"He was going to kill him and then claim you. Once he claimed you, you would be off limits to me. I couldn't let that happen." Her eyes were begging me to see how this was a good thing. "He knows what I am, but he does not know my purpose. If he knew, he would never have listened to me."

"Why didn't you just come and get me yourself?" I raged as I approached her.

"You would not have accepted. This is the only way Elena. I had to force your hand to get you to comply and take my place." There was a sudden harshness to her voice and she seemed to have gone cold.

"What is supposed to happen when you complete your task?"

"I am to return to my home world," she said lightly. "If it is to be your task, my essence would simply fade and you would become yourself again; powers and all."

I shook my head and stared at her in disbelief. "Where. Is. He." I hissed and enunciated each word.

Faster than I could follow, she had me between her and the wall I had fallen into. Tyler growled and tried to lunge at her, only to repeatedly hit an invisible wall of some kind. "I do not know where he is."

"You said-" I began before my mouth shut and I couldn't open it no matter how hard I tried.

"I said I might know where he is. It was your fault for misinterpreting my words," she said in a cold voice. Her features seemed to soften as she pulled back, but my mouth was still closed against my will and my body seemed to be super glued to the wall. She sighed heavily as she looked at me with watery blue eyes. "I need you to accept this duty Elena. It's the only way." She ran an index finger over my cheek and wiped away my tears of anger. My eyes went wide and I stopped struggling for a second as I thought that over. "Elena Gilbert, you are the next Guardian," she breathed, a single tear rolling down her cheek before she leaned in and pressed her lips to mine.

I went still as I felt warm and fuzzy inside and out. The feeling was better than the most pleasurable thing I had ever experienced and I began to feel heady with it. My eyes closed and my body relaxed. I sighed against her lips and in the blink of an eye the feeling went away. I opened my eyes and Anya was gone. I stared at Tyler and he could only look back at me with the same confusion in my eyes. He turned into his human form and looked around. "What the hell was that?"

I bit my lip as I shuddered from the sudden cold I felt. "I think she just died," I breathed and wrapped my arms around myself. "She was my last shot at finding him," I added quietly and my nails dug into my biceps. I let go and slammed both fists into the wall where it went straight through as if the concrete was made of paper. "Damn it!"

"Elena, we will find him," Tyler said lightly from behind me.

I turned on him and shoved him. I was tired of hearing that. My fangs were out and I knew it scared him a little, but he was trying not to show it. "If that were true, we would have him already!" I screamed at him and continued to lash out at him without really being in control of my actions.

He caught both of my wrists and then he was holding me, squeezing me tightly against his chest as I sobbed. He pulled my sunglasses off before they broke and held them for me. When I had calmed down, he pushed me back and tipped my face up. "Your eyes stopped glowing."

"It's about time," I muttered and made the mistake of looking down. My eyes jumped right back up to his face. "Go get dressed," I demanded and turned from him, dwelling over what just happened.

"Does that mean you're an angel now?" he asked when he returned, fully clothed.

I shrugged and wiped at my eyes. My face was back to normal and my fangs were tucked away safely in my gums. "I don't know. I don't feel any different. Yet," I whispered and took his hand before rushing back to the hotel. I leaned against the building while I regained my composure and then walked in front of Tyler. Neither of us knew what to say and I was thinking of how I was going to explain what happened to Stefan, John, and Alaric.

As I walked inside, I spotted Allorah and I remembered the way she had acted earlier. She looked nervously in our direction as we approached her. "Miss Gilbert," she said over a tight throat. "What can I do for you?" Her voice was full of fear but she was doing a good job of keeping it under control.

"You can tell me how you were able to keep me out of your thoughts," I said quietly, leaning as close to her as I could.

Her eyes darted around the room, looking for an escape. She swallowed loudly and her heart rate increased when she realized she was trapped. "Follow me," she said and walked into an employee's only room behind the desk. Tyler and I followed her and she shut the door after making sure we were alone.

"Who told you about me?"

"It was a long time ago. There was a woman who came into my yard when I was a child and handed me a piece of metal. She told me to keep it and guard it with my life. I was supposed to give it to a woman named Elena when it was time. You're the first Elena I met, but I had to be sure it was you that she talked about." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a coin like the two that I already had. She extended her hand for me to take it from her. "She told me to keep guards up in my mind at all times. I never knew why until earlier."

"Did this woman have blonde hair, blue eyes, and pale skin?" Tyler asked.

She nodded and pleaded for me to take the coin from her hand. "Take it," she demanded.

I reached for it and the moment my fingers curled around it my eyes closed and Damon filled my vision. I felt myself smiling as I saw him sitting in a throne type chair much like the one Anya had. I didn't know how, but seeing him gave me his location. I opened my eyes and spun to look at Tyler. "I found him," I breathed and turned to Allorah. I pulled her into a tight hug. "Thank you!"

"Welcome," she muttered and then slipped outside of the room when someone called for her.

"Come on, let's go tell the others!" I said excitedly and pulled him towards the stairs.

* * *

**a/n: yes, Damon is coming back soon. yes, Elena is somewhat of an angel. More twists yet to come :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**a/n: I have to say, I wasn't sure about the last chapter so I'm really, really glad people liked it :)**

NINE

Since we met Stefan waiting for the elevator, all we had to do was track down John and Alaric. Thankfully, they were in their room and I pounded the door a little too hard because I left dents in the door. Fortunately, I didn't get any splinters. Though I was pretty sure little slivers of wood wouldn't kill me, I didn't want to take my chances. "Elena? What is it?" John asked as he stepped aside to let us in.

"I know where he is."

"You all might want to sit down for this one," Tyler said for me and then nodded for me to tell them what happened. I took a deep breath and then Tyler put his hand up. "You know what, maybe I should tell them. None of us can keep up with your words when you're excited."

I glared at him, but I knew it was true. I was on the verge of being a total girl where information flows at the speed of light. I settled for smiling like an idiot as Tyler told them about the meeting with Anya we had just had. If he was wrong, I corrected him, but for the most part, he did the talking. He stopped when we got back to the hotel and I held up the coin Allorah had given me. "I guess Anya was leaving messages for me. The receptionist downstairs had this and it showed me Damon and where he is."

"And that would be...?" Alaric asked.

"Bucharest."

There was a moment of silence before Stefan chuckled softly. "All this time and he was in Bucharest?"

"Yes, why?"

He shook his head in amusement. "Nothing, it just never occurred to me to look in such an obvious place."

I stared at him, trying not to lash out at him. "Please explain."

"Ever since _Dracula_ was printed, vampires have been drawn to the area. Since tourists want to seek the infamous creature, the real vampires get an easy target and the locals don't think twice about it. I just never thought Klaus would go there."

"For an Original, he's not that original," Tyler joked and laughed at himself. His laughter died immediately when he saw that we weren't laughing at all. We were just glaring at him. "Hey, it was funny."

I ruffled his hair as I walked past him and he tried to bat my hands away. "If you want to live, I suggest you follow me," I said as I opened the door and began walking towards the stairwell.

The long car ride to the airport was filled with questions about Anya and what that meant for me. Tyler's main focus was that I had kissed a girl right in front of him and he hadn't realized it until it was over. All I could tell them was that I didn't know what it meant for me, but I was sure I would find out. What I did know was where to find Damon and how to kill Klaus. That was all that mattered.

* * *

With an expert skill at convincing the airline workers, the five of us were on the next flight to Romania and the pilot was under the instructions to get there as quickly and safely as he could manage. When we landed, it was the next day since we had left pretty late in the afternoon. I knew the humans had to eat so we let them and I went with Stefan so he could feed. He insisted I eat, but I was still full from Tyler's blood the night before. "How did Allorah know to keep you out of her head?" he asked as we walked through the thriving city to find a victim.

"I don't know. Maybe Anya told her when she gave her the coin all those years ago."

"So are you really going to seek out all ten of them?"

I shrugged, "It's not like I really have a choice. Besides, with my team of expert demon hunters behind me, how could I lose?" I asked as I winked at him. "Especially once Damon is back. He'll be more than happy to get rid of the others so nothing like this can happen again."

He stopped, pulled me off to the side, and made me look at him. "What if Damon isn't the same person he was when you last saw him?"

I looked at him in confusion. "I don't understand. Why would he be any different? Klaus has had him for seven months Stefan. God only knows what horrible things he's been put through."

He stared at me, his lips moving as if he was debating on voicing his opinions or not. I stayed out of his mind, deciding it would be rude to invade at this moment. "It's just...You don't know Damon. Not really."

"Bullshit."

"How much has he told you about his past?" he asked, trying to get me to listen with an open mind. I didn't say anything and he nodded. "When he came to Mystic Falls he was that cold-blooded killer you thought he was. I don't know what made him change into the vampire you know. I've never seen him like that." His voice was soft at that sentence and he cleared his throat to continue. "Ever since he had his first taste of blood, his goal has been to hunt, get laid, and be rich. Klaus is everything Damon wished he could be and I'm afraid that when you see him, he'll be the Damon you hated."

I shook my head and shoved him. "Why are you doing this?"

"Elena, I just want you to prepare yourself for anything."

I met his eyes and he was telling the truth. He really didn't believe Damon was being tortured and after the image I had received from the coin, I didn't believe it either. "You're wrong," I said weakly and kept moving. I stopped after a few steps and turned back to him. "You know what, I think it's best if you just left."

"Elena-"

"You want Damon to be like Klaus, be his old self so that I will come running back to you."

"That's not-"

"I _love _him Stefan. Not you. You only came along to pick up the pieces when he broke my heart," I said and shoved him again. "That's not going to happen. Go back to Mystic Falls," I demanded and started to take off.

He grabbed my wrist and held me in place. I was a little startled that he was able to do it since I was supposed to be stronger, but I turned to look at him with fiery eyes. "That is not why I'm here. I don't want Damon to be the way he used to. I like the way he is now. It's the real Damon; the Damon I grew up with. I know you love him Elena. I do. I'm not trying to do anything to ruin it for you."

His words were hard, but I could hear the truth in them and the pain he had from the thought of losing his brother again after just finding him. I pulled out of his grasp and studied him. "When I saw him in the vision, he was sitting in a throne chair," I said quietly.

He moved to stand right in front of me and pulled me to him. His hand stroked my hair before cupping my face and tilting it up. He kissed my forehead and then pulled back. "Everything will work out. We'll-"

"Please, stop telling me we'll find him," I breathed as I stepped away from him completely. "Come on, let's go eat."

* * *

After meeting back up with the others, we went to yet another hotel and after talking to concierge, we had secured the entire top floor to ourselves. To my astonishment and that of the guys' the top floor was one giant suite. There were three bedrooms, a common living space, and a kitchen area. It was about the size of the downstairs of the boarding house. "Wow," Alaric said as he moved to the wall of windows overlooking the city. "The view is incredible."

This was the rich part of the tourist neighborhood, but it was one of the tallest hotels and had roof access again. I knew it would come in handy when we found Damon because we didn't know what condition he would be in and how long we would need to stay here. "You know, I don't think I can afford this one," John said as he joined Alaric at the windows.

"I'll take care of it," Stefan said, looking at me. "So, we're here. Where do we go next?"

Four pairs of eyes turned towards me and I could do nothing but stare back. "I don't know. I only knew he was here. I just assumed I would know where in the city he was," I said and looked down. "We should scout the area."

"No, there's too much ground to cover," John said as he looked out the windows. I followed his gaze and sighed, knowing he was right. "And it's freezing out there."

I looked at Stefan. "You knew this was a vampire city. Any night clubs where vampires frequent?"

A smile tugged at his lips. "Damon used to come here, not me. He-" He stopped himself as realization washed over him. "When I saw him again back in the nineties, he wouldn't stop talking about Red Sea. It's a bar here in the city. The only thing he talked about was the easy meals he had gotten there."

"Alright, then let's find the bar and see what we find."

He looked uneasy about that. "I think just the two of us should go. From what he told me, the clientele are cruel. They're all true vampires and I don't think they would think twice about killing either of you," he said, looking at John and Alaric.

"What about me?"

"I'm not sure what the deal is between vampires and werewolves around here, but if the rumors are true, your presence would start a war."

"If he's there, I need all of you with me," I said stubbornly.

"We'll just go to scout it since it's early and then we can decide. Not all vampires have rings like we do," he said pointedly and I absently touched mine.

"The three of us can be close if you want," Tyler said, taking a step closer to me.

I nodded. "We'll all go. You three can sit at a cafe close by while Stefan and I go poke around inside the club. Then we'll come back to you and go from there."

I looked at each of them, waiting for some kind of objection and just when I was about to open the door, Alaric brought up a pretty good point. "Before we do anything, we should get some White Ash Wood. No sense in making plans until we have the necessary tools."

"Stefan and I will go get a feel for the club and you three will track down the weapons." John and Alaric exchanged glances. "What?" I asked them.

"White Ash is indigenous to North America," John said lightly.

"There has to be a lumber yard around here somewhere that knows where to get it in Europe. Try that first," I suggested and looked at Stefan. "Let's go."

I learned quickly that Damon had described the location of the bar very well to Stefan because he seemed to know exactly where to go. We zoomed through the city and stopped in front of an ancient looking warehouse. The whole block looked abandoned as if the factories that once stood here and long since closed down. He nodded to one of the buildings that looked a little bit more updated than it should have. It was set back further from the main roads so that passerby's on the street wouldn't know any better. "That's it."

"What are we waiting for?" I asked as I took a step forward.

"I know you can be tough, but I'm telling you to play it up. Don't be afraid to show your strength."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "I thought you'd never been here before."

"I haven't, but I've been to a few places like it."

"When?" I asked.

"Before I changed my diet," he said quietly and I let the subject go as I followed him towards the entrance.

There was a short boy just inside. At first glance, he looked like an average dorky teenager, but the more I studied at him, the more I could sense his true age. "Welcome to Red Sea," he said in a heavy accent I couldn't place. He was looking at me with recognition and I straightened, trying to keep my anger in check.

I glared at him as I walked past, keeping close to Stefan as we entered the front part of the club. It looked like any other club would; dance floor in the middle surrounded by chairs and tables. The bar was in the back of the room and there was a stage for live music in the front. It was a large space and all the decor was typical Goth. My eyes swept over everything, burning the image into my memory. There were three doors; two were bathrooms and one was marked employees only. At least, I assumed it was because I couldn't read the language the words were in. For being the middle of the afternoon, there was a decent crowd inside. The dance floor was empty, but plenty of the tables were taken by people with drinks. "Can I get you anything?" came a female voice as a tall woman appeared in front of us.

"No," Stefan answered for both of us.

She smiled, showing half extended canines. "First timers?" she asked with a sense of pride. "It gets better after dark. If you're staying, I recommend coming back then."

I inclined my head to her. "I think we just might."

She looked at me for the first time and did a double take. "I- I'm so sorry," she muttered and bowed her head to me. "I thought-"

"Can we speak privately?" I asked, putting on my best act. Looking like Katherine did have its advantages.

"Of course," she breathed and led us to a fourth door behind the bar. She dropped to one knee and grabbed my hand, kissing the back of it. "Forgive me. I didn't know it was you milady."

"Is Klaus here?" I asked, deciding to get straight to the point.

She got to her feet, but kept her head bowed. "Not right now, but he'll be back tonight. He's out hunting, but his guests are upstairs," she said and smiled sheepishly. "I would be glad to tell him you'll be here tonight."

"No," I said and grabbed her face to force her to look at me. "You never saw me. I didn't come in asking about Klaus. Katherine is dead. Do you understand?" I asked, pushing my way into her mind to make sure the compulsion worked and to find out where exactly Klaus was keeping his "guests."

She stared at me blankly and then sank down on the nearest chair. She put her head in her hands and began to weep. "Katherine is dead," she mumbled.

Stefan and I took that as our cue to leave. I used the same lines on the boy at the entrance and then we walked back outside. "Did you find out where he is?"

"He's definitely in there. There was another door by the bathrooms. That leads to where he is."

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Positive," I returned and a smile brightened my face. "Tonight, we get him back."


	10. Chapter 10

TEN

Stefan called John to check on their progress and told him what we had found. They were checking one of the two lumber yards in the city so we took the other one. Once we asked locals who spoke English how to find it, we took off with our speed and stopped in front of the building. "It looks like a Home Depot," I breathed as Stefan opened the door for me.

"I was just thinking that," he returned and we stepped inside.

A man in work clothes pulled off his gloves and smiled our way before approaching us. He said something in what I assumed was Romanian and I shook my head. "English?" he asked, his voice was pleasantly Brittish. "Thank God. My Romanian is horrible. What can I do for you?" he asked us.

"We need some White Ash wood. I know it grows in North America, but I hoped you might have some in stock," I explained.

His brows furrowed as he beckoned for us to follow him to the counter off to the side. "We just had a shipment of product come in this morning. It's possible that it was on the truck."

I let out a deep breath to calm my nerves. "That would be great."

Stefan reached for my hand and squeezed reassuringly. The man stared at the computer, clicking every so often with the mouse. "Ah, it looks like we did get some in," he said and looked at me.

"Perfect," Stefan said for me. My throat had gone dry and I couldn't talk even if I wanted to.

"It looks like it was a special order though," he said and turned towards us. "And the client already paid for it."

"Whatever the price was, we'll pay double," Stefan said confidently.

The man's brow rose and his eyes widened. "That's quite a lot of lumber." He looked between the both of us again and then sighed. "Alright, I'll give you two planks and make something up for the client."

"You would do that?" I asked, finding my voice.

His eyes flickered my way and he nodded. "I can tell you need it for something important and I would feel horrible for not giving it to you. Besides, it looks like you were prepared to rip my throat out to get it anyway." His eyes flashed and my lips parted as I realized what he was trying to tell me.

"Werewolf," I whispered and felt my lips curve into a smirk.

He grinned, his green eyes flashing golden for a brief moment. "I don't know any vampires who buy wood for any reason. I can only assume that you're going to kill a very special one since this is a hard to find wood." He kept his voice low even though no one would be able to hear us over the noise of the saws.

"Exactly."

"It's none of my business, but since vampires generally don't kill vampires, I feel more inclined to help you." His eyes gave me a once over and his nose twitched. "I can smell the wolf blood in you."

Of course he could. I wondered why the vampires at Red Sea hadn't noticed it. They might have been too distracted by my resemblance to Katherine to care. I cleared my throat and smiled briefly. "Yes, I have a werewolf friend."

He chuckled softly at how I said friend. "From what I've heard, our blood was lethal to your kind."

"I guess we'll find out when the full moon hits," I returned.

He extended his hand and I grasped it with my own. "I'm Remy."

"Elena," I said and nodded towards Stefan. "This is Stefan."

"Is the vampire you're after pretty dangerous?" he asked.

"When he wants to be," I replied. "He took something that belongs to the both of us and we came to get it back. Whatever the cost. I have it on good authority that Bucharest will be safer with this vampire out of the picture."

"Normally, the word of a vampire doesn't mean anything," he said pointedly and looked between the both of us. "But I've never met a vampire about to kill one of theirs either. I'll be right back," he assured me and went to get the planks.

"That went well," I said, looking at Stefan. Neither of us were sure what to make of what just happened.

"He's either going to do as he said and get the planks for us or he's sharpening some stakes to come back and kill us." His eyes were sparkling with humor as he said this.

"You should call the others and tell them we found some," I said and he stepped outside to make the phone call.

"What did the vamp take from you?" Remy asked, startling me for the first time in a long time. He had a flatbed with two planks half as tall as me.

"My mate," I stated. "It's complicated," I added after he gave me a look that said he expected me to continue.

He let out a low whistle and handed me two pairs of new gloves. "Here, you and your companion are going to need this if you're making stakes."

"That was thoughtful. Thank you," I said and took them from him.

"Your wolf friend, does he belong to a pack?"

I opened my mouth to answer and then closed it, realizing I didn't have an answer. I never asked Tyler if his uncle ever asked him to join the pack up in Maine. "I'm not sure."

"When you get what you came for, have your friend come and see me. We're always looking for new members," he said as Stefan came back into the shop.

He gathered both planks in his arms and thanked Remy. "You have no idea how much this means to us," Stefan said.

The sincerity in the word "us" was enough to make my day complete. "My pleasure," he said and extended his hand to me again. I used that opportunity to search his mind, just in case this selfless act was a rouse and found that it was genuine. "Before you leave, you have to come back and tell me what happened."

I didn't say anything to indicated that we would or wouldn't before I left with Stefan and returned to the hotel. We had used our speed all the way up the stairs until we got to the room. We put the wood on the floor in front of the couch and sat down while we waited for the others to return. "That was strange," Stefan said after a few minutes, referring to our encounter with Remy. "Out of all the people in the city, we run into a werewolf."

I nodded. "First Allorah in Russia and now Remy. It's just too much of a coincidence for my taste," I said. "I just don't know why everything is happening at once. It's like once I met Anya, everything changed."

"Maybe your luck changed. All that bad luck has to have a counter balance," he teased before he got up. "Drink?"

"Yes please," I answered, putting my feet on the coffee table.

We drank in silence that broke once the others came into the room carrying armfuls of scraps. Stefan and I put the gloves Remy had given me on and all went to work on making as many stakes as we could while forming a plan. Stefan and I were to go in and break into whatever lay behind that other door inside the club. John and Alaric were going to come in after us and wind their way through the crowd. Tyler was going to be lookout because we were certain that his presence would start something we didn't need. It wasn't the best of plans, but no one else seemed to have a better idea. All of us were going to be armed with as many stakes as we could carry. We even made them in varying sizes so that we could carry more. By the time we were done it was around ten o'clock; completely dark outside except for the city lights. It was a long car ride, one that was filled with gloom. Of course I was in a good mood because we were getting closer to finding Damon, but at the same time, we didn't know what to expect.

We parked several blocks away and walked the rest of it. Goodbye didn't seem to be appropriate before parting ways so Stefan and I separated from the group without saying a word. _Be careful_ I heard three different voices direct towards me. I smiled even though I wasn't facing them. I had put the sunglasses on again; not because my eyes were glowing, but because they hid most of my face. I wasn't as recognizable with them on. "Just head straight to the door and stay close," I told Stefan.

The same boy was at the entrance and he waved us in without saying a word. This time, the dance floor was crowded with people dressed in black and various other dark colors. It reminded me of the time in Dublin when Damon introduced me to his friend Sebastian who co-owned the bar. I scanned the crowd and looked at Stefan who nodded before we ventured deeper inside and pushed our way through the dancers. We were going to make an effort to fit in before we determined if there was any security in place. After about five minutes of pretending to dance along with the beat, it didn't appear that the door was being guarded by anyone. _How should we go over there without looking suspicious?_ I asked.

_I have an idea, but you can't get mad at me_, he replied and I didn't have time to ask what he meant before he led me through the rest of the crowd. As we broke through, he pretended to stumble as he pulled me close and pressed his lips to mine. I wanted to push him away, but I didn't want to draw more attention by fighting him. I let him kiss me as we both stumbled through the crowd surrounding the dance floor, laughing and tripping over tables and chairs until my back hit the wall right next to the door. I reached for the handle and twisted, surprised that it wasn't locked.

We slipped inside and the minute it shut behind us, I pushed him away and wiped my mouth. "What the hell did you do that for?" I hissed, keeping my voice low. I was too angry to form the thought.

_It worked didn't it?_ he countered and nodded towards the spiral staircase hidden in the back by racks of storage shelves. _I did it to get us over here without drawing anyone's attention. Not for anything else._

I said nothing as I moved ahead of him and began descending. The farther down we went, the harder it was to see. I pushed my sunglasses up into my hair and found that even though there was practically no light, I could see. I thanked both Tyler and Anya because I didn't know which person was responsible for this. At the end of the stairs there was a door surrounded in light where the cracks were. We opened it and had to blink to adjust to the sudden bright light and my blood turned icy at what I saw.

There, in the middle of the room on an oversized black throne-like chair, was a sight that I never expected to see. "Damon?" I breathed, trying to make sense of it all.


	11. Chapter 11

ELEVEN

There had been two different scenarios running through my head of what it would be like when I found Damon. There were several versions of both scenarios, but the theme was still the same. The first type of scenario I imagined was Damon just locked in a cell filled with vervain or being injected with it, waiting for me to find him as Klaus had said. I had thought I would simply open the cell, exchange a few words with Klaus if he was around, bring him back to wherever we were staying, and go home when he was better. For the other, I imagined something like the time I had found Stefan with the tomb vampires. I expected some sort of medieval torture room where Damon would be chained to something, bleeding from various cuts, and near starvation from lack of blood. I had thought we would bring him back to the hotel or wherever we ended up, nurse him back to health, and go home. Both situations ended the same; happy and together back in Mystic Falls with Katherine's mess far behind us.

I was wrong.

What I saw in front of me was worse than any nightmare I had had when it came to finding him. He was draped in that massive throne chair like a king. He had one leg thrown over the arm of the chair, the other barely touching the floor. There was one arm tucked behind his head and the other propped up on the other arm of the chair. His chest was bare and his black jeans were riding dangerously low on his hips. There were two women grouping him; both of which had bite marks and bloodstains on various parts of their exposed skins. Damon's lips and chin were coated in fresh blood and he was looking at me and Stefan with sheer fury in his blue eyes. He was radiating power and his eyes had hardened into the cold eyes that I had seen when I first met him. The only good thing about this sight was that, physically, he was fine.

Stefan was right; he had reverted back.

"Damon?" I breathed, the words barely audible to my own ears. What I did hear didn't even sound like me.

He ignored Stefan as he sat up and waved the women away. He pushed himself off the chair and licked his lips, his eyes flashing with want as he kept his gaze on me. "Took you long enough," he said in a cold voice.

I ignored the tone in his voice because the words melted me. Shaken by the sight of him after so long, I found myself moving subconsciously towards him. He did recognize me and he was happy to see me. His gaze was locked on my eyes and there was a peculiar look on his face, but I wasn't paying attention to it. I met him halfway and wrapped my arms around him. One of his hands dug into my side and the other twisted in my hair as he pressed his lips to mine and kissed me savagely. In the back of my mind I knew I felt bad that Stefan had to watch this, but at the taste of the blood on Damon's face, I forgot he was even there. I wasn't even aware that we had moved until I felt the rough stone wall biting into my back as Damon pushed roughly against my front. "Damon," I breathed against him and felt the tears wet my cheeks. Then I noticed that his kiss had turned from lust to something else and there was a sharp pain in my side from his fingers. "You're hurting me," I whispered.

"Katherine," he murmured against my lips and I immediately stopped moving. I shoved at him, but he didn't let go.

"I'm not Katherine," I hissed as I tried to pry him off of me.

Faster than I could keep up with, he hand his hands wrapped around my neck, fangs out, red-blue veins outlining his eyes, and rage where there should have been joy. "No, you're the bitch that killed her!" he hissed.

Stefan was shouting and I saw him over Damon's shoulder as he began to ran towards us at the same time I felt something jab into my side. Damon stepped back, gloating for a second before Stefan jumped him and they began fighting. I sank to the ground in a daze and my hands came away from my side covered in blood. I winced as I moved and looked to see a stake in my side. I pulled it out and looked at it in confusion. I should have died instantly; the stake had been three-quarters of the way inside my body. I gently lifted the hem of the shirt and though my clothes were bloody and torn, my skin was smooth as if nothing had happened. My body turned to jelly as I let out a shaky breath and waited for the stars in my vision to clear.

When it did, I saw Stefan and Damon literally ripping each other apart. "No!" I yelled and as I waved my hands, they both flew to opposite sides of the room and were unable to move. They both looked at me and I dropped my hands to my side. In turn, they both crashed to the ground.

Stefan and Damon both looked at me in utter disbelief. Damon's face was irritated and Stefan was relieved. "You're alive?" they both asked at the same time with the same emotion that was on their faces.

"Of course she is," Klaus said, coming into the room from a back entrance I hadn't noticed before. "She's different," he added and smiled briefly in my direction.

I straightened and moved towards Stefan. "I met Anya."

The amusement in his eyes vanished as he stared me up and down. "She told you where to find me," she said flatly after his observation.

"And I did. The deal was that I find him in a year and you leave us alone," I said, risking a look at Damon.

He was fuming at me silently and it broke my heart. I turned my eyes back to Klaus who looked at Damon with a smirk. "Damon, this young lady wants you to go with her."

Damon spat blood at his feet. "I'm not going anywhere with her."

The venom in his voice forced me to shut off my emotions so I could focus. I knew Klaus had done something to him, but those words still hurt. My eyes filled hate as I looked at Klaus and gave him a sly smirk of my own. "Anya asked me to say goodbye for her."

His eyes flared at that and I felt a rush at winning a small victory. "She-"

"She told me your weakness. She told me about how the two of you were brought into this world. She told me _everything_," I said coldly and took a few bold steps towards him against Stefan's frantic pleas in my head to be quiet.

His eyes hardened and he shrugged. "So she told you of my true nature, it-"

"She told me about her true nature too. The one that she kept from you," I interrupted, earning pure rage from him.

"You lie," he seethed, trying to hold onto his carefree persona, but his anger was getting the best of him.

"She was an angel, born with you by accident. Her objective was to destroy the demons that sired the vampires in the order they came into this world. Since you were the first, she couldn't kill you or any of the others." My voice was hard and clipped to the point that I didn't even recognize it anymore. I took another step forward and tipped my head to the side. "She's dead now. She gave her task to me along with her powers in full. And I have no problem killing you."

I pulled a stake from my boot as did Stefan and Klaus laughed despite his glowering anger towards us. "I was born a fighter, you will not win this."

"Katherine was older than me too and I killed her three times."

Damon let out a growl and I forced myself to ignore him. He was slowly moving around Klaus, trying to get into a better position to lunge at Stefan again. Stefan had promised me he wouldn't kill Damon if a fight broke out, but at the same time, I wasn't going to expect Stefan to let himself die to keep Damon alive. Klaus took a step in my direction and burned through me. "If you know what is best for you, you will leave. As much as I want to kill you for revenge, I would rather torture you by keeping him here. Your parlor tricks are no good here."

It was my turn to show power as I straightened and moved forward again. "You're wrong. Anya's power has mixed with mine. You don't know what I'm capable of."

He had closed the gap between us and grasped my chin in one hand, pulling the stake from my grasp and tossing it behind him. I grinned; that was exactly what I wanted him to do. Stefan tossed his stake as Damon pinned him to the wall, waiting for Klaus' order to strike. "Neither do you," he whispered and began to squeeze, the sound of my jaw snapping filled my ears and I grimaced through the pain.

And in that moment, all hell broke loose.

The door Stefan and I had used burst open to reveal John, Alaric, and Tyler in wolf form. I had to ignore what they were doing as I closed my eyes through the jarring pain and collect my energy before directing in a blast at Klaus. His eyes widened in surprise as he was pushed backwards by an unseen force. He didn't go flying into a wall like I had hoped, but I put enough distance between us to break his hold and move away so my jaw could heal. It healed within seconds, surprising me as I thought of what to do next. Damon was fighting with the other four and he was incredibly strong; able to hold his own against them. John and Alaric were dropping stakes and other pieces of wood like I had asked them to and then they were done, they seemed to back off, letting Tyler and Stefan take the bulk of the fight. I was grateful that they listened and didn't try to intervene with Klaus and I.

I thought I had seen Klaus enraged before and I was wrong. He flew at me, hurtling us both across the room and we crashed into the wall. Bits of stone chipped off and rained down to the floor. My body was broken, but it was already beginning to heal, as was his. "You will never get rid of me," he hissed as he reared his arm back and plunged it down at my stomach.

I screamed because I had been expecting a punch, not a hand ripping through my flesh, tearing at my insides. I coughed and tried to claw at him, gathering up more energy to push him backwards. This time, he went soaring across the room and I felt dizzy from the loss of blood. It was a full minute since we had hit the wall before I looked down and I was fully healed again. It was baffling, but I wasn't going to question it. I got to my feet and nodded to Tyler. He and Stefan had managed to knock Damon out for an uncertain amount of time, giving them enough time to distract Klaus, with the help of John and Alaric, while I concentrated on all the stakes. I had to keep my eyes open so I could lock on to Klaus since he was the target. I stayed where I was, pretending that I was still in pain and waiting to heal.

It was less of an effort than I thought to lift six stakes off the ground and aim the sharp ends at Klaus. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Damon begin to stir and I had to drop the stakes to focus on getting inside his head. I hated the pain I saw him go through as his body convulsed and clutched at his head. When I was sure he wasn't going to do anything to get in my way, I concentrated on the stakes again. By that time, Klaus had knocked Alaric and John down. Even though I knew they could heal, the angles in which they were sprawled on the floor left me doubtful. Tyler was bleeding profusely from one side and Stefan was growing weaker from the amount of blood he was losing and the amount he had already lost fighting Damon.

In one swift motion, Tyler let out a yelp as Klaus struck him and I heard something snap. Stefan staggered to his knees from the same blow and then Klaus began to advance on me. The hand he had impaled me with was still coated in my blood and I winced involuntarily. I kept my focus on the stakes that were now aimed and ready to be fired. He knelt by my side and lifted me up by my throat. "Pity. You would have made an excellent queen."

I spat at him, angering him more. The way he was squeezing my throat made me think I had a few seconds before his fingers went right through it like paper. It was breaking my concentration, but I managed a faint smile. "See you in hell," I chocked out and pushed with my mind.

His eyes enlarged considerably and his body pressed against mine. His fingers tightened enough to make me cry out for a second before they went slack. He sagged against me and then slid down my front. I had seen the way vampires either disintegrated into dust or just turned into a corpse depending on their age, but what happened with Klaus was completely different. He fell on his side and I saw the wood protruding from his back. He looked like I would expect a human corpse to look; stiff and pale, with no life in their eyes. I stared, waiting for him to get back up and attack and then shrieked when black shadows surged up around the body. Though they were back, they were painful to stare at as if they were made of everything bad in the world and to stare at them was to be swept up and taken with them. When I looked again, Klaus was gone. In his stead was a ring of black ash and a scorched floor. When I realized he was truly dead, I scrambled over to where the others had fallen.

John and Alaric were finally able to sit up and they painfully made their way over to Tyler and Stefan. Tyler was healing nicely from my blood still being in his system. Stefan was the one to worry about. Alaric leaned over him and looked at me. "I'll take care of him," he promised and nodded towards Damon. "Go."

I watched until Stefan bit Alaric's wrist before making my way to where Damon was sprawled out in a pool of blood. Since it wasn't all his, I wasn't that concerned. Most of his visible wounds had begun to heal. I knew my messing with his mind was what made him stay unconscious. I grabbed his hand and slipped back inside his mind to fix the damage I had caused and thanked my lucky stars I hadn't done anything serious to him. His eyes fluttered open and he took a sharp intake of breath, more out of shock than necessity. His gaze held mine and he was throughly confused. "Elena?"

I nodded, tears falling from my face to his. "Thank God you're okay," I breathed pulled him into a sitting position so I could hold him tightly. He didn't return my hold and I swallowed nervously as I lifted my head and looked at him. "Damon?" I breathed, not really wanting to know what was going on because I was afraid I already knew the answer.

He looked around the room and then down to where my hand was holding his. "What happened?"

The others were standing now, ready to move on. "I'll explain later," I assured him and got to my feet, pulling him with me. "Right now, you need blood." I kissed him lightly and didn't say anything as he returned the kiss with mild indifference and curiosity. His eyes flickered toward Stefan in a way that had my heart sink into my stomach.


	12. Chapter 12

TWELVE

By the time that we arrived back at the hotel it was one in the morning. There was only the two receptionists in the lobby who didn't look up at all when we ran for the stairs. Stefan and John had gone to the nearest hospital to bring back as much blood as they could once they dropped us off. Alaric and Tyler had immediately gone to take a shower while I took care of Damon. He was in and out of consciousness. I had slipped inside his mind a few times during the car ride to see what was wrong but found that his mind was untouched. Whatever Klaus had done to him had either disappeared when he died or his compulsion left no evidence of damage.

Once in the room, I stripped his clothes and brought him into the shower. Luckily, it was big enough for him to sit in and I cleaned him, dried him off, and then put him to bed. I took a quick shower of my own and then slid into bed next to him. He stirred the minute I settled down and his blue eyes went wide when he realized we weren't wearing any clothes. "I have three questions."

"Ask," I said, propping my head up on my arm to look at him.

"Where are we? Why am I naked in bed with you? And what the hell is up with your eyes?" His voice was on the edge of being humorous and his eyes did that wiggling thing I had missed. He reached up with one hand and brushed some strands of damp hair from my eyes. "Not that I mind, I just find it a little odd."

His skin was paler than it should have been and I knew he was dangerously low on blood. Stefan should be back soon. "My eyes changed when I had Tyler's blood," I said with a smile. "I had it again a few days ago and it made my eyes glow. What's the last thing you remember?"

He shook his head, the humor fading from his eyes as he looked at me and then laid back on the pillows. "Like I said, everything is a little hazy. I can remember something that happened in Mystic Falls..." his voice trailed off and he moved his eyes to me, brows furrowed with concern. "Someone hurt you?"

I nodded. "His name was Klaus. Does that ring a bell?" I asked.

He thought it over and nodded. "It sounds familiar, but I don't know why." He looked more intently at me. "Does Stefan know that you're here? Naked; with me?"

"Yes and there's not a damn thing he can do about it," I said in a harsh tone that made his brows arch.

"Trouble in paradise?" he quipped, meaning it as a joke.

I cleared my throat and slid out of bed. I grabbed the robe on the dresser and pulled it on. "You really don't remember anything," I whispered, mostly to myself. "Will you do me a favor?" I asked and waited for him to nod. "Stay in bed. Stefan will be back soon with some blood for you. Then we'll talk."

"Why don't you just lend me some of yours?" he asked, eyes flashing dangerously.

"I'm not human," I said and left the room before he could see the tears gathering in my eyes.

Tyler was coming out of his room at the same time. He was looking at me with concern and confusion. "Why aren't you in there with him? I thought you'd be in there all night. All week actually," he said and forced out a nervous laugh. His laughter died instantly as he realized my eyes were swimming with tears. "Elena?"

He crossed the room and gathered me into his arms. I didn't return his hold, but I just stood there. "He doesn't remember anything. He doesn't know we're together."

My voice was surprisingly calm and level as I spoke. "Maybe it's a side-effect of whatever spell Klaus had him under." He pulled me back and made me look at him. "Anya gave you her powers; maybe you can heal his brain. Maybe it'll wear off on its own."

I sighed against him and stepped back. "I'll see how he is once he eats." I saw his gaze drop down to my stomach. "What?"

"He put an arm right through your stomach," he stated as if he were trying to believe it himself.

"And Damon stabbed me with a stake too. Yet, here I am," I breathed and sat on the arm of the couch.

Stefan and John entered the room carrying as many bags of blood as they could. "How is he?" Stefan asked as he handed them to me.

"He doesn't remember anything."

"That's probably for the best," he said until he realized what I meant. "Oh."

"You two go get cleaned up and I'll get him to eat and see what I can do. Thank you," I said and gathered my wits before entering my room again. He had gone unconscious again and I had to wake him up. "Eat," I said, keeping my emotions turned off while he fed. He was watching me and I was easing into his mind to see if there was something I had missed.

It took me a moment to register that he had said something and I refocused my attention on him. "Do you need to feed?" He was holding a bag up for me to take if I wanted.

I took the bag and ripped into it, feeling the blood sing in my veins as I drank deeply. His skin was back to normal and we could only stare at each other. "Feel better?"

He looked at me apologetically. "I would be if I could remember the things you want me to."

I sighed and shifted my weight. "It's not your fault you can't remember," I said and gathered the empty bags and put them in the trash can by the bed. When I turned around he was there, right in front of me.

"I hurt you," he said, staring hard at me, trying to remember.

"You weren't yourself."

His hands moved to rest on my sides and then went up and down absentmindedly. I shuddered from the feel of his touch and tried hard to remind myself that he wasn't the Damon I had fallen in love with. Not the Damon that had fallen for me. I tried to pull away, but his hands rested firmly on my hips. "Maybe, maybe not, but I still hurt you. I don't know why that bothers me."

There was a glimmer in his eyes that told me he was on the verge of remembering. I put my hands flat against his chest and tried not to get my hopes up. I went over everything that had happened since the day I met him and how things had changed. When I got the part where Anya had kissed me to transfer her powers, my eyes widened. "That's it!" I whispered excitedly and looked at him with joy.

"What is?" he asked, his breath warming my cheeks.

I moved my hands up until they were cupping his face and pulled his lips down to mine. I parted his lips with my tongue to let him know that it was okay to kiss me and he returned my kiss. It was sweet, like a first kiss and it was experimental on his part. He wasn't sure what I was doing or how far I would let him go with it. I smirked at that thought and then I felt it. The same energy that I used to produce a mental blast began flowing from me to him. It was powerful and I opened my eyes to see both of us surrounded by a pearlescent white light. I squeezed my eyes shut again and kissed him harder, intent of getting him to remember what happened. I concentrated on the day in the hotel when we were together for the first time. I relived every moment I shared with him since then and all that had happened since the day he was taken from me.

He pulled back for a moment and his eyes went from confused to recognition instantly. "Elena?" he said, making sure I was there. I nodded, feeling my heart soar out of my body as I nearly melted in his arms. He kissed me heatedly and I knew for sure that he remembered everything. "Elena," he breathed, confirming that he remembered.

I had moved towards the bed and we both came crashing down on top of it. We were just a tangled mass of limbs, groping every bit of skin we could reach. This was the reunion I had been imagining and I wasn't going to waste any time. Neither was he apparently. He had pushed the robe open and parted my legs before driving himself inside of me. I groaned as I looked up at him and snaked my hand up to run my fingers through his hair. I would have loved to take it slow, but our bodies had other ideas. There would be more time for that later; we needed to get it out of our systems. I cradled him between my thighs and propped myself up on my elbows so that I could reach up and kiss him. We both moved our hips in perfect rhythm and it wasn't long before we came together. He collapsed on top of me and we just lay there in silence.

He was playing with my hair and placing small kisses along the side of my face. His hand trailed from my hair to my side where he had shoved a stake into me and frowned. "I remember staking you."

"That's because you did."

"Then how is it that you're here?"

"I'm going to credit Anya for that," I said and smiled.

"Who?"

I groaned, dreading the fact that I needed to tell him everything, starting at the beginning, and slid my body over his. I leaned forward so I was laying completely on top of him and kissed his forehead. "I really don't want to talk right now," I breathed and nipped at his bottom lip. "We can do that later."

"If you insist," he said with mock irritation and kissed me deeply, his hands spread out on my back. I broke the kiss to sit back and guided him into me. This time I set a slow pace, challenging my control as well as his. We spent the rest of the night getting carnally reacquainted with each other over and over again.


	13. Chapter 13

THIRTEEN

I reached out towards the other side of the bed and it was empty. I sat up straight in alarm. It couldn't have been a dream. Before panic set in, I noticed a pile of clothes by the foot of the bed and a note on top of them. _Stefan got clothes. -D._ I sighed deeply and tried to calm my nerves before gathering up the clothes and bringing them to the bathroom with me so I could shower. After I dried off, I started dressing, reminding myself that I had to talk to Stefan about his choice of underwear. Then again, this style seemed a little more Damon-esque. I pulled on the jeans and black long-sleeved v-neck shirt before heading out to the living room. Tyler and Damon were watching the sports channel and seeing them together made me a little uneasy. I knew I would have to come clean about our little incidents and I wasn't sure what that meant for Tyler.

"Where are the others?" I asked as I sat in between them.

"Airport," Tyler answered. Neither of them had looked my way and their gazes were still fixed on the TV. "They're getting tickets for us," he added in further explanation.

"When will they be back?"

"Soon," Damon answered.

I grabbed his chin lightly and turned his face towards mine. He looked unhappy and then smiled my way. "We need to talk," I said.

He sighed, looking longingly at the TV and then got up, pulling me with him. We went up to the roof and leaned against one of the edges that had the best view of the city. "So you're going to fill me in on what happened while I was gone?" I told him about the two weeks I spent locked in our room at the boarding house and then how I decided to take off. I explained how Stefan and Tyler found me and everything I went through prior to finding Gaston in France. "I think I'm going to like this new badass Elena. She sounds perfect."

I laughed as he slid his arms around me and pulled me to him. "I don't think she's going anywhere," I breathed and then pulled back. "Okay, here's where things get really complicated."

I decided it would be best to tell him everything without leaving the minor details out. That included the things that happened with Tyler. His eyes darkened when I went over those parts of the story and his fists balled at his sides. It struck me as odd that he reacted more angrily when I went over that as opposed to Stefan. He didn't even react when I told him how we got to stairs that led to where he was. I knew we were up on the roof for a long time, probably about two or three hours, while I went over everything. He lifted my shirt up and ran a hand over my side and stomach where there should have been evidence of being hurt. "So this Anya girl was an angel?"

"Right. She passed her powers to me and her mission or whatever you want to call it."

"I staked you," he said, staring me in the eye. "You're obviously stronger than Klaus. Why did you let me hurt you?"

"I didn't want to kill you and I don't know what I'm capable of yet." I took his hands away from my skin and held them tightly. "The good news is that we'll never have to deal with any of Katherine's shit again."

He smiled lightly. "I guess not. Are we going on the hunt for the Originals?"

"I think we should go home and think about it. I don't want to just jump into it because I want all of them to help me."

His brow rose. "All of them?"

I nodded. "Bonnie, Stefan, Tyler, Alaric, and John. We all work well as a team together, but I want them to live a little before I ask them to help me with this."

"Why can't you and I do this?"

"I'll think about it," I said and pulled my shirt down. "Once I figure out the best way to do this, I'll let you know."

I started to walk away, but he caught my wrist and tugged me back. "Did you sleep with Tyler?"

I stared at him for a moment and then shook my head. "Technically, no."

"But you wanted to," he stated.

"No," I said in a not so confident way. "The first time was in France. It was more because of the blood. It made us react and it was weird. The second time it was because I was drunk and I could feel his heartbeat. I was content with just biting him again, but it went a little farther."

"I can smell you all over him."

"He had some of my blood too," I said sheepishly. "I promise you, whatever little attraction that's between the two of us is strictly because we've exchanged blood."

He smiled at the fact that my sentence had come out completely wrong. "The more times you do that, the more attracted you'll become."

"That's not what I meant to say. I just-"

"I understand. He's under your skin and there's nothing you can really do about it. You're with me and you wouldn't do anything like that. I trust you Elena and I know that whatever you do with his was motivated by the blood. That is not your fault. As much as I hate it."

I laughed and hugged him. "I'll make sure to stay away from him on full moons."

He nodded, satisfied with that answer. "That's all I ask."

We both seemed to overlook the fact that I had slept with Damon while still being with Stefan. To be fair, those were completely different circumstances. We said nothing as we went back into the suite to see the four of them watching TV. There were styrofoam containers on the coffee table with food that had been there awhile. Damon let go of my hand and before any of us could react, he reared his arm back and socked Tyler in the face. "Damon!" I yelled in shock.

He looked down at Tyler on the couch holding his bloody nose. "You know what you did," he said and then went to the bar to get a drink.

Stefan was trying to contain his grin, John and Alaric were horrified because to them, it was random, and Tyler was whining on the couch. I could hear his nose healing itself from where I stood and I wasn't sure I should go over there if he was bleeding so I stayed right where I was and Damon brought me a drink. _Totally worth it_, came Tyler's voice in my head as he finally got up and headed to his room to wash up in the bathroom.

I shook my head and looked at Damon. "Feel better?"

"Much," he said and took a long drink.

I looked past him to the other three. "When do we leave?" I asked.

"The day after tomorrow. All the flights are booked because tomorrow is New Years Eve," Stefan answered.

I nodded and looked down at my outfit. "Thank you," I told him and then looked at Damon. "Come on, we're going shopping."

"For what? You have clothes."

"I'm going to see what I can bring back for everyone."

"Do I have to go?"

"You owe me."

"How do you figure?" he asked.

"For staking me."

He groaned and finished his drink. "How long are you going to being using that against me?"

"Eternity," I said and pulled him towards the door. "We'll be back later," I told whoever was paying attention. As we took the elevator I looked at him. "There is something I have to do either today or tomorrow and it involves Tyler."

"And what would that be?" he asked in that tone that said he didn't like this idea.

"There was a werewolf at the lumber yard who helped us out and he could smell the wolf blood in me. He gave us the White Ash wood to help us when he didn't have to. He asked me to bring Tyler by so he could meet him."

He shrugged and nodded. "I would love to meet the werewolf who helped you."

I grinned and cupped his face. "Sure you do," I breathed and pulled his lips down to mine. The playfulness of the kiss lasted about five seconds before he started to heat it up. The elevator stopped on the fourth floor and opened it up to a woman with her two kids. Damon and I pulled apart and I buried my face on his chest, trying to keep my laughter inside. If only she knew that the display of affection should have been the least of her worries. Once outside, we walked through the snow filled streets holding hands and ignoring the stares of people wondering why we weren't wearing our coats. We talked as if everything were back to normal and went about our shopping.

* * *

When we got back, it was around dinnertime. I had gotten a few things, mostly just for Jenna, Jeremy, and Bonnie. I even bought a small suitcase to put them in that we could take on the plane. John, Alaric, and Tyler had left to eat already and Stefan was by himself when we returned. By that time, Damon and I were hungry as well. "Stefan, we're going to hunt. Want to come?"

Damon eyed his younger brother and then me. "Why would he come with us?"

"He's been feeding from humans so that..." I didn't want to say anything to imply he was weaker so I just stopped talking.

"So I could be strong enough to help her," Stefan finished for me. "You two go, there's still some blood bags here."

I looked between the two of them and stepped back. "Seriously? After everything we just went through the two of you can't get over what happened a hundred and fifty years ago?"

"Elena-" they both started.

"You both fell in love with Katherine. She left you both. You both fell in love with me and I'm not going anywhere. I chose to be with Damon and Stefan and I are friends. We're always going to be around each other and I've had it up to here with the tension between you two. Stefan, if you go back to feeding on animals, that's your choice and I will respect that. We're always going to be friends and I'm always going to be with Damon. Damon, you're going to accept Stefan's choice of diet and you're not going to make any snarky remarks about it. You're going to remember that he fought alongside me to help get you back. If you truly hated each other, you wouldn't have done that."

I was glaring at both of them and they had a look of awe on their faces as they stared back at me. At the same time, they looked at each other. Damon spoke first. "She's right. You could have had her all to yourself and yet you helped her get me. That's not what would I would have done."

Stefan smiled at that and nodded. "I have to admit, it did cross my mind, but I'm fairly certain she would have killed me."

"Katherine was a mistake," Damon stated after some silence. He looked at me and grinned. "There's always going to be brotherly quarrels."

"That's fine," I said and folded my arms across my chest. "I want to see a hug."

The smile on both of their faces was instantly replaced with a scowl and surprise. "What? No," Stefan said at the same time Damon muttered, "I don't think so."

"I'll wait," I said with a smirk of my own. They both sighed and then have each other a brief, brotherly hug and then stepped back. "That's much better. Thank you," I said and kissed both of them on the cheek. "Now come on, I'm starving," I said and opened the door. "And for the record, I never, ever want to hear her name again," I added as we waited for the elevator.

"Done," Damon said and grabbed my hand. Stefan nodded in agreement and I smiled warmly. It was the first time in a long time that I felt truly happy and at peace. I squeezed Damon's hand and he returned my grip to let me know I wasn't dreaming.

* * *

The next morning was New Years Eve Day. Damon, Tyler, and I went to the lumber yard to see if Remy was still there. "Why am I here?" Tyler asked as we caught a cab and I gave the directions.

"Because Remy wants to meet you."

"Remy?" Damon questioned and went rigid in his seat.

I looked at him and nodded. "That's the werewolf that helped us. You know him?"

"Yes." I waited for him to elaborate and spread my hands in front of me to urge him on. "You'll see."

The ride from then on was quiet. I asked the cabbie to wait for us and then I led them inside the building. Remy was right there when we walked in and he smiled my way. When he saw Damon, there was hate in his eyes. "I thought you were banned from here," Remy said, his voice dripping with anger.

"Uh, Remy, this is Damon. He's my mate. And this is Tyler, my wolf friend."

I wasn't so sure he heard me because he and Damon were engaged in a glare off. I snapped my fingers in front of their faces and they looked at me. Remy looked at Tyler and smiled. "I have a few questions for you," he said and turned from Damon and I. "Follow me," he said and they walked away towards what I could only hope was the break room.

I turned to Damon and led him back outside. "Now will you tell me what that's about?"

"I was here in the nineties and Red Sea was a favorite club of mine. At the time the wolves and the vamps were okay with each other. There was a girl there and each night I went she was there. I approached her and immediately knew she was a wolf. We started fooling around and then her mate caught her."

"Let me guess, she was Remy's mate."

He nodded. "There was a big fight and since then the wolves have been banned from the club." He shrugged as if it were no big deal. "Apparently he still holds a grudge."

"You think?" I asked sarcastically. "Man whore," I muttered and pushed him lightly.

"All in the past," he whispered as he leaned down to kiss me.

"Better be," I breathed against his lips. _We'll be at the cafe across the street,_ I directed at Tyler.

He didn't respond, but I knew he heard me. It was about ten minutes later before he came out of the shop and waved us back over. Remy was ignoring Damon as he spoke to me. "The woman never came to pick up her shipment."

"What was her name?" I asked though I was pretty sure I knew the answer.

"Anya Sorkinov. She ordered it two months ago and said it had to be delivered that day and it couldn't be late."

"The day we took some?" I questioned. Suddenly I was feeling a little strange.

He nodded. "Something tells me that wasn't a coincidence."

"Neither was your being here that day."

"Did you kill that vamp?" he asked.

"Yes," I said, feeling a shudder run up my spine as I relived the battle. I rolled my shoulders and cleared my throat. "He's never coming back."

"Good to hear," he said and extended his hand to me.

I shook it and smiled at him. "Thank you for your help."

He nodded and we went back to the cab. "What did he want?" Damon asked Tyler. I was surprised that they were talking so civilly.

"He asked if I wanted to join their pack. Uncle Darren never really asked me to join, but then again, I wasn't there long before we came after you."

"Sorry," I mumbled.

"Not your fault. I'll call him when we get back and see what he has to say. It would be pretty awesome to belong to a pack. Uncle Darren said he would explain the dynamics and politics to me eventually." He was beaming with pride and I couldn't help but feel it too. "Plus, I heard the werewolf girls are fiery."

I felt Damon's chest rumble in agreement and I shot him a glare. He cleared his throat and looked over my head at Tyler. "Boys," I muttered, but I was smiling.


	14. Chapter 14

**a/n: I'm torn between making part five or just ending it. If you'd be up for another installment I will oblige and write it :) If you think it would be drawing it out too much, let me know. And no, this isn't the end of this story just yet. Thank you to my readers and reviewers!**

FOURTEEN

The plane ride home was probably the longest one I had ever taken. Stefan, Damon, and I had made sure we ate heavily before coming to the airport. I spent the ride leaning on Damon and talking to him. There were times that I caught myself staring and he had to remind me that he was really there. My emotions were something that I had to get used to. After several months of not feeling anything, it was strange to feel it all. Pearl met us in Jeremy's car, the one I had given him, once we arrived at the airport in Richmond. "Does anyone know we're coming?" I asked, looking at John.

"Just Pearl," he said as we all piled into the car and began to drive. John turned around in the front seat to look at me. "Things have changed since you've been gone."

I held his gaze for a long moment before I nodded. "Is that you're way of saying Jeremy's one of us now?"

He nodded and I knew that it hurt him. He still hated vampires in general but now his daughter and his only nephew were one. I reached forward and put my hand on his shoulder. "Sorry."

He shrugged and looked forward. "His choice."

The good thing about coming back in early January was that Matt and Caroline would be away at school. Bonnie was supposed to have gone to school as well, but I knew she had stayed behind because she wouldn't be able to concentrate. The rest of the ride was quiet and as much as I wanted to see Jenna and the others, I just wanted to go home and enjoy being with Damon. We pulled up in front of the house and Jenna was sitting on the porch drinking coffee, bundled up in a sweater. Today wasn't as cold as it could have been and her eyes lit up when she saw all of us. Her mug fell to the ground and shattered, the coffee staining the wood as she flew down the steps and threw her arms around me.

"Thank God you're home!" she squealed. She let go of me and pulled Damon into a tight hug. "I'm so glad you're alive and well," she said to him and then laughed. "Well, you know what I mean."

"It's good to be back," he told her and we watched her hug Stefan, Tyler, John, and then finally Alaric. Their reunion went something like mine and Damon's had only a little bit more controlled.

We walked into the house and standing in the kitchen were Anna and Jeremy. They both did a double take and then, using his speed, Jeremy was there to sweep me off my feet. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming home?"

"Surprise?" I said sarcastically as I returned his hold.

He shook his head and smiled before he looked at Damon. "Good to see you again," he said to him.

Damon's brow rose. "Really?"

"You can't be all bad if she loves you," he said, nodding in my direction.

"Thanks Jer," I said and shook my head as they exchanged the "man hug." I waved to Anna. "Hi."

"I hope you're not mad," she said, her eyes flickering to Jeremy.

"Of course not," I replied and gave her a short, awkward hug. "Welcome to the family."

Jenna and Alaric came in after the exchange of greetings and was closing her cell phone. "Bonnie is on her way," she said excitedly and hugged me again. "I'm so happy you're home."

"Me too," I said and I could feel her heartbeat; feel it against my chest. I tore myself from her grasp and cleared my throat. "I think I've had enough hugs," I said around a tight throat.

"What happened to your eyes?" she asked, taking a step back from me. I could smell her fear from where I stood.

I looked at my reflection in the window and sure enough, my eyes were beginning to glow. "That would be an unfortunate side effect of an incident with Tyler," I muttered.

"I'm just that unforgettable."

I gave him a warning look as Damon's head snapped in his direction. "I wouldn't bring that up again if I were you."

He looked at Damon whose eyes were spitting daggers at the wolf. He cleared his throat and turned back at me. "Consider it done."

Jenna's wide eyes lost their fear after a few moments and she swallowed. "Um, Tyler. Your uncle told me to have you call him when you came back."

"I'll do that," he said and went into the office to make the call.

"And you," she said, putting a hand on her hip. "We have wedding plans to make."

"Give me two days to adjust and I will be at your beck and call."

She nodded, finding that answer acceptable. "Okay, you're the maid of honor..."

"And?"

"And I don't have many female friends. Would you mind if I borrowed yours?"

I smiled and nodded excitedly. "Whatever you need."

"Oh good, because I already asked Bonnie to be my bridesmaid and of course Anna. I was thinking of asking Caroline too, but I know you haven't told her about this yet."

"I don't think I'm going to tell her. Telling her would mean telling her what Damon did to her and I don't think I can do that. It's your wedding though," I said and smiled at her.

"I think three of you will be plenty. Jeremy is going to be the best man and John said he would give me away."

My smile widened as I looked at the group of men still standing in the hallway talking. "Let me guess, Damon and Stefan will be the other groomsmen?"

She nodded and offered me a glass of wine that I accepted. "Hilarious right?"

"You bet."

We were silent for a moment before she asked a question that made me choke on my drink. "When are you and Damon tying the knot?"

I had to lean over the sink to avoid spilling the wine on my clothes and spit it into my sink. "I don't know. We're going to live forever, I kinda figured that was enough."

She gave me that "I don't believe you" stare. She nodded her head and tipped her glass at John. "He would love to walk his daughter down the aisle."

I knew Damon was listening intently, I could see it in his face as he tried to keep up with his conversation. I smirked at that small victory. "Let's work on your wedding and let the other subject go."

She clinked her glass to mine and smiled my way. "I can do that," she said and took another sip before looking back at Alaric. My eyes met Damon's and he winked. I winked back at him over the glass and took another drink myself. Inside I was feeling the irony of Jenna's suggestion. I had no problem turning into a vampire to be with Damon, but marriage? That was giving me butterflies.

Bonnie came in as I finished my glass and I was glad I set it down because she jumped me. We both went down on the kitchen floor, catching all of the attention from the men. "Don't you ever scare me like that again Elena!" she cried as she held me. She said some other things but they were too high pitched for me to catch. However, I could read her thoughts and they were all happy about my being there. We got to our feet, no thanks to anyone else, and she hugged me again. When she let go she went to Damon and hugged him briefly. "Glad you're home," she said before moving to Stefan.

Damon had raised his brow at me and I shrugged. As Bonnie's reaction to me faded into the background, I watched all of them mingling around the great room of the house and couldn't help but feel that swell of happiness that told me I was home. And I was exhausted. I moved to Damon and he slipped an arm around my waist. "Let's go," I breathed.

"Sounds good to me," he returned.

I said goodbye to everyone at once, promised I would see them tomorrow, and we both took off to the boarding house. Once we were there, we stood in the hallway and I knew down to my bones that I was home. It felt so, so good. I pulled off my jacket and just let it fall to the ground. I was pretty sure that I was on the verge of dropping to the ground to kiss the floor I was so happy to be back. I took off the necklace that contained Katherine's ring and handed it to him. "Here, you should take this."

He took it, walked to the trash can, and threw it in. "I don't want anything to remind me of her. I'll have Bonnie spell something else for me."

"I like that idea."

"Yeah?" he said, looking at me with his smirk of arrogance. "I have another idea that you may like."

"I think you should tell me about it," I breathed before moving towards him. I put my hands on his hips as he cupped my neck and kissed me. Our reunion had been nothing like this. It was more final here. We were together and we were home. It was perfect.

Sometime between being downstairs and laying on the bed we had both lost our clothes. By some unspoken agreement we were taking it painstakingly slow. He started at my lips and kissed his way down; touching every inch of my skin. By the time I felt his tongue touch my most sensitive spot, my entire body was alive and thrumming with pleasure. He stopped before my release and kissed his way back up the same way he had on the way down. I was trembling by the time it was my turn to return the favor. When I reclaimed his lips, we were both trembling with want and need.

He rolled so that I was beneath him and he slid inside me with ease. I cradled him between my thighs and with each penetration, my body lifted off the bed to meet him and accept all of him. His kisses were feather light and like torture to both of us. Going slow was a test and we were both failing. I gripped his shoulders and when a groan escaped my lips, he took that as an invitation to pick up speed. I wrapped my legs around him and began scraping his back with my nails. He buried his face in my neck and nipped lightly. I closed my eyes and ground my head against the pillows as I felt my head begin to bind. His fangs slid into my skin and sent me hurtling over the edge. I cried out and shuddered as he continued to thrust and drink at the same time. It wasn't long before he was following suit and came right after me.

He collapsed on top of me and rolled off to lay on his side. He licked his lips and seemed to delight in the taste. "You must be an angel," he breathed as he wiped blood from his chin and licked it off. "You taste exquisite."

"That's a horrible pick up line," I breathed and laughed slightly, only to be cut off by a deep kiss. I tasted my blood on his lips and when he pulled away, I licked them clean. "Oh," was all I could say. My blood tasted faintly similar to what Anya had in her cup.

We lay there for a little bit in silence. I was staring at the ceiling while he stared at me and played with my hair. "I heard what Jenna said."

I moved to my side and cocked an eyebrow. I knew he had heard, but I had stayed out of his head though I was curious about his thoughts on the subject. "And?"

"She's right. John hinted at it too."

I lifted my head off the pillow. "When?"

"Before Klaus." Something in his tone was off.

I smiled widely as I realized why. "Your man date?"

He responded by putting a pillow over my face. "You weren't supposed to remember that."

I giggled as I tossed the pillow off the bed. "Like I would ever let you live that one down."

He laughed and then took my hand in his. He toyed with the ring on my finger and held my gaze steadily, showing that he was going to be serious. "Is it something you would want?"

I bit my lip. "I never really thought of it before. I know it would mean a lot to Jenna and John, but... I don't know."

He traced my jaw line with his index finger and then tipped my chin up. "Give it some more thought and let me know what you decide."

I snorted. "I never pictured you ever marrying anyone."

"I didn't either until I met you."

It immediately brought tears to my eyes and he shied away. Cruel vampires still get uneasy around tears. I laughed and kissed him repeatedly. "I'm crying because I'm happy," I said against his lips.

"Is that a yes?"

I pulled away and smirked, pulling soft black trendils of hair from his face. "You didn't ask me anything." He stared at me for a second and opened his mouth. I stopped his words by laying two fingers across his lips. "If you're going to pop the question, I want you to get creative. Surprise me," I said and smiled down at him.

He nodded. "I'm up for a challenge," he said around my fingers.

"Good," I said and kissed him while sliding over top of him.

It felt so good to be home.


	15. Chapter 15

**a/n: A big, big thank you to all of you who reviewed ch. 14. Most of your comments had me laughing and they all made my day!**

FIFTEEN

We had been back in Mystic Falls for about two weeks and everything was back to normal. Bonnie was practically living in the boarding house with Stefan and unlike last time, I was completely okay with it. Stefan had told Bonnie about his new feeding habit and to all of our surprise, she was okay with that too. Everyone seemed okay with each other and no one was arguing. Unless Tyler was around while Damon was out. The possessiveness when they were in the same room was more for show than anything, but they couldn't help it. It was fun to watch too.

This morning I had to go to Jenna's to do some serious planning. She told me she'd made her decision on where and when but wouldn't tell me until I got there. Damon wasn't there when I woke up so I figured he was downstairs. I showered and got ready for the day. I was standing in the closet thinking about how I should probably get something to eat soon while I was staring at my clothes and then I opened the fridge and grabbed a blood bag. I stopped where I was with my fingers around the bag and half of my body in the fridge. "What the-"

I was cut off by the sound of a glass shattering on the floor and I whirled around to see Tyler standing in front of a shattered beer bottle. "You... You..."

I could only stare at him, trying to figure out what was going on. "I was in the closet thinking about how hungry I was and then I..." I looked at the stairs and then back to the kitchen. "I just teleported."

Tyler nodded, still staring with his jaw slightly open. "I think so."

I started laughing. "Damon's going to _hate_ this," I said through bouts of laughter as I went to get the blood bag out of the fridge.

He walked around the glass and got some paper towels to clean it up. "Why would he hate it?"

"He loves that I'm all powerful but I can tell it annoys him sometimes. Not to mention he's jealous," I said as I rinsed out the glass and set it in the sink so I could help him. "Please, do not cut yourself," I said sternly. It had been almost three weeks since we had shared blood, but I wasn't sure how I would react to the smell of it. I was pretty sure that it would end badly.

When we had finished, I grabbed my coat by the front door and turned to Tyler who was making himself a drink. "You don't mind if I hang around here by myself?" he asked.

I shook my head. "No, I don't have a problem with it." It struck me then that he hadn't been home much since coming back. I was going to have to talk to Damon about letting him have one of the extra rooms upstairs. "I'll be back later," I said and opened the door.

"Why don't you just try teleporting?" he said with a grin.

I shut the door and smiled. "Good idea," I replied and shut my eyes. I thought about the front porch at Jenna's and when I opened my eyes, there I was. I shook my head and tried to wipe the huge smile off my face before I went inside. "Jenna?" I called out to let her know I was there.

"Be right down!" she yelled from upstairs.

I headed to the kitchen where there was a pot of coffee on and I got a mug out of the cabinet. At least today was a school day so whatever was holding Jenna up wasn't going to make me sick. I laughed at that thought as I sat at the island and waited for her to come downstairs. "Hi," I said as she came into the kitchen fully dressed. "I know I'm early, but I didn't want to sit there and do nothing."

She smiled and made herself a mug of coffee before sitting next to me. "Shoot, where did I put that-" she stopped as her wedding book came floating into the room and landed between the two of us. "I'm never going to get used to that," she said as she started leafing through it.

I grinned around my mug. I knew the ceramic was hot, but it felt warm to my fingers. "I discovered a new power today."

Her eyes widened. "Oh?"

"I can get anywhere pretty quickly with the vampire speed, but now I can be anywhere instantly because I can teleport."

"How did you manage to come across this one?"

"I was in the closet, thinking about eating, and then I was reaching into the fridge to get food." I took a drink and put the mug down on the counter. "I used it to get here too. Enough about me. You said you had decided on a venue and time."

She smiled and put her hand over mine. "While I appreciate your offer to have it anywhere in the world, I'm going to have to decline. I've decided on the church here in town where my parents and my sister got married. If Mom and Dad were here, it's what they would have wanted."

I squeezed her hand lightly and nodded. "I love that idea."

"And it's going to be this summer."

"This summer? That's only six months away."

She nodded in excitement. "Which means we need to work our asses off to pull it together. We're thinking late June, early July."

"That should be good. That way, no one has any excuses not to come."

"Exactly what I was thinking."

"Alright, so we have the location and the time. We need to go dress shopping pronto if the wedding is so soon."

"There's a few shops in Richmond," she said and saw me shaking my head. "What?"

"You said no to a destination wedding, but we're going to New York to get your dress."

Her face was glowing with joy. "Really?"

I nodded. "Let me know what's a good day for you and I'll check with Bonnie too. Anna and I are pretty much free whenever."

She launched her arms around me, almost knocking both of us to the ground. "Your the best!" she squealed in my ear.

I pulled out of her grasp and moved to the phone. "I'm going to see if they're free today so we can get colors picked out. Do you have a scheme in mind already?"

She shrugged. "I was thinking, purples, blues, and silver. I know you and Bonnie look great in any color, but I'm not so sure about Anna."

I laughed as I dialed Bonnie's number. "Vampires look great in anything," I assured her and she was jealous for all of five seconds. "Hey Bonnie, it's Elena. Do you work tonight?" I asked.

"I'm off at four."

"Will you come over to Jenna's?"

"Sure, I'll see you then," she said and hung up.

Then I called Anna and she agreed to come over at four as well. "Where is Jeremy?" I asked Jenna after returning to the island to sit.

"He's pretty much living with Anna. I'm an empty nester."

I looked around and then back at her. "Is this too much house for you?"

She shook her head. "No. Alaric is going to move in soon and then we'll probably start a family."

I smirked. "Is that your way of telling me to get my room cleared out?"

"I know I said you would always have a place here, but..."

"I understand," I assured her.

"Jeremy already cleared his room. It didn't take much convincing on his part," she said with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "At least with Anna he dropped the wounded teenager act."

I was going to say something when the phone rang. I had yet to replace my cell phone. I answered it for Jenna. "Gilbert residence."

"There you are," came Damon's voice.

"Hello to you too." There were unfamiliar noises in the background. "Where are you?"

"At John's."

I resisted the urge to laugh. "Okay," I said trying to sound normal but he growled at the tone in my voice. "What are you doing there?"

"Talking. I'm done now and I called the house but Tyler is there."

"I'm about to start packing up my room here. Want to help?" I asked.

"Sure."

"Good, you can get some boxes and bring them over," I said and smirked over the phone. "See you later," I said and hung up on his grumbling.

"Damon?"

I nodded. "We'll clear my room out until the girls get here we can get some things out of the way."

"Good, because I have two showings to do. What time did they say they would be here?"

"Four, four-thirty."

"Perfect. I'll make dinner when I get back," she said and grabbed her purse as I followed her to the front door. She pulled on her coat and gave me a quick hug before going to her car. "See you later!" she called over her shoulder.

While I waited for Damon to get here with boxes, I went to the office to write down all the florists that had good reviews and the right flowers. I had about three numbers out of the fifty that came up close to town. One was near the Grill and the owner had been a friend of my grandmothers. Well, technically she wasn't my grandmother. I set the pen down and started searching for places to have the reception. The only place I could think of off the top of my head was the Grill, but Jenna deserved something a little more elegant. As I found a good website, I sensed Damon enter the house. I smiled and continued to stare at the computer. His arms slid around my shoulders and he spun the chair so I was facing him. "What are you doing?"

"Looking for places to have the reception. I already got a list of florists and then I have to look into caterers," I said as he pulled me out of the chair.

"Boxes are in the living room," he said after a long, deep kiss.

"I have something to show you," I said and he narrowed his eyes at me.

"I'm not going to like this am I." It wasn't really a question. I shook my head and then concentrated on my bedroom while still holding onto Damon. Sure enough, when I opened my eyes, we were standing at the foot of my bed and the door was closed. He looked around, stunned by what just happened and then he looked at me. "I really, really hate you."

I grinned and gently pushed him onto the mattress. "No you don't," I said as I moved to straddle his hips. I leaned down and kissed him before getting up. He did not look happy by that action. "We really do need to pack the room up."

"Now?" he asked as I opened the door and used the telekinesis to bring the boxes up the stairs.

I nodded. "The sooner we do it, the easier it will be." I looked around the room, unsure of where to start. All of my clothes were at the boarding house as well as my everyday stuff. The only thing that needed to be packed up were trinkets and memorabilia. "Oh, I need to talk to you about Tyler."

"What about him?"

"How would you feel if he moved into the boarding house with us? His father denies what they are and Tyler needs to be around people he doesn't have to hide from. He still has to talk to his uncle about things, but for the most part, I thought he could live with us." After asking, I lifted up a trophy and wrapped my fingers tightly around it as I relived the memory of the day I had gotten it.

I put it in a box and looked up to see Damon nodding. "That should be fine. I'll double check with Stefan." I couldn't help but laugh and he gave me a stern, warning look that I ignored. "Shut up."

I picked up another nicknack and relived the memory before putting it away. I sighed, if I was going to do this, I needed gloves. I didn't want to relive every memory my things contained. I went to the hall closet and found Jenna's extra winter mittens and pulled them on. When I touched something experimentally nothing happened. "Good," I mumbled to myself. "Hey, do you know any good reception halls that would be good for after the wedding?"

"How many people is she inviting?"

"Probably no more that fifty people. Some relatives from both sides and friends. She doesn't want a big wedding."

"We could use the boarding house. The backyard was used a lot as a place to entertain large parties. We could put tents up and hire... What?"

I had the biggest grin on my face and I shook my head. "Oh nothing," I said with fake innocence. I tried to put on a serious face as I cleared my throat. "But if you and Stefan wouldn't mind, I'll ask Jenna what she thinks about it."

"And I am not going to say anything about this ever again," he stated but he was smiling under his false anger. After we had about half of the room done, he asked, "Have you talked to Jeremy?"

"No, why?"

He shrugged, "I was just wondering how he's adjusting to his new life. Mostly, I'm wondering how Anna's taking to having a newborn tagging along in her footsteps."

I laughed. "I was thinking of taking him hunting one night to talk to him about things. Get to know him again." Then I thought more about the wedding and the fact that Matt and Caroline would be back. I groaned at that. "What am I going to tell them?"

"Who?"

"Matt and Caroline. Caroline's not a big deal, but Matt... I'm not sure what Stefan told him."

"You'll figure it out. You have a few months before they come back," he said and we finished the room in silence.

When we were done, I labeled the boxes and we taped them off. All together there were seven of them with nothing important. Two of them I could take to Goodwill and one was nothing but garbage. "Anybody here?" came Anna's voice at four on the dot.

"Up here," I called down to her at a normal level, knowing she could hear me. She appeared in my doorway and looked around. "Want to help us move these downstairs?"

"You can't just do that with your powers?"

"I could, I just don't know if I'll hit anything on the way down," I said and we had the living room full of boxes in under ten minutes. "Thank you," I said to them as Bonnie and Jenna walked in at the same time.

Jenna had bags of groceries that we took from her and brought them to the kitchen. "What are you making?" Damon asked, looking cautiously at the contents of the bags.

"I thought I would try something new with chicken. I saw it on the cooking channel last night," she said as she and Bonnie hung up their coats and purses.

Damon was scowling at the ingredients and looked at Jenna. "I think I'll cook for you," he said and helped me put things away.

Jenna pretended to pout but I knew from her thoughts that had been her plan all along. I smirked and let her know I liked the way she thought. "If you must," she said and sat down at the barstool.

"You ladies talk and don't mind me. Pretend I'm not even here," he said and began setting up for whatever he was going to make.

Jenna got a few beers from the fridge and handed them out while laughing. "You're all underage and the only one that really matters is Bonnie. Just be careful before you go home okay," she said to Bonnie.

"Thank you," I said to Damon and kissed him on the cheek before going to the dining room table with the others to talk wedding.


	16. Chapter 16

**a/n: This was originally going to be longer, but it turned out to be too long so now it's two parts :) I know a lot of you want more of Jeremy, but I can't stand his character so that's why I don't include him more often. I realized too that giving Elena her latest power was a bit over doing it, but I think the explanation in this chapter should make it less powerful. Either way thank you so much for all the reviews :)**

SIXTEEN

Bonnie was about to knock on the door to my bedroom when I opened it and we smiled at the timing. "What can I do for you?" I asked her.

"Busy today?"

I did a mental run down of things I had to do and for once, there was nothing. "Nope, I'm actually not doing anything today. What's up?"

"Up for some shopping?"

"As long as we don't mention anything about a wedding," I said, giving her a stern warning look as he headed for the stairs. "I'm glad it's coming along nicely, but I've had it up to here with planning."

She laughed and followed me down. "I know how you feel. Then again, you're the maid of honor, not me."

It was then I realized the house was empty. "Um, we're missing some people."

She nodded, obviously knowing more about this than I did. "Stefan said he was taking Tyler up to visit his uncle for a few days and Damon is probably still trying to convince Alaric to have a bachelor party."

I snorted as I grabbed my purse. "Of course," I said and opened the door for her. "Where to?"

She unlocked her car, refusing my offer to use my ability, and we slid inside. "Let's just go everywhere downtown."

"Sounds good," I said and she began to drive. It had been a month since I packed up my old room and everything was in storage in the basement of the boarding house. Most of it was pictures and old journals. Reading them made me feel silly and like I was prying in on someone else's life.

The wedding plans were coming along nicely and it seemed that everything was going to go without a hitch. Jenna loved the idea of using the boarding house, leaving Bonnie, Anna, and I free reign of the reception. So far, we had an idea, but we were still waiting for some RSVP's to come back. We had the wedding dress and the bridesmaid dresses picked out and being made. The final fitting would be sometime in May and we would go back when they called us. The dresses that Anna, Bonnie, and I were going to wear were strapless. They were a dark purple with silver stitching and came to just below the knee. They had a sash under the bust that was made of a light blue and the material for the whole ensemble was a satin of some sort. They really were gorgeous dresses that we could wear after the wedding. We had the flower arrangements all set; the florist in town was going to die roses blue, purple, and white for the tables at the reception and to hang on the pews at the church. We had a caterer that was serving Italian food (Damon's insistence) and all of the other major plans were taken care of. The only big thing left was to pick a theme for the reception. Other than that, it was just minor details and waiting for responses. I was grateful that Jenna wasn't a flashy person and she didn't want to go over the top. It saved a lot of hassle.

I felt bad because I had gotten to know Anna really well because she was helping with wedding plans, but I had yet to really talk with Jeremy. Or anyone else for that matter. I made a mental note to talk to him after I was finished shopping with Bonnie. "Earth to Elena," Bonnie said as she snapped her fingers in front of me.

I realized we had parked and from Bonnie's expression we had been here for a few minutes and she had said something she didn't feel like repeating. "Sorry, I was thinking about Jeremy."

"It's okay, I was just asking you about Valentine's Day."

"What about it?" I asked, suddenly understanding why she didn't want to say whatever it was twice.

"Look, I know I promised you that there would be no double dating, but they seem to be getting along and there's no awkwardness around us anymore. Stefan and I don't have anything planned and I think a night out with all of us would be really fun. What do you think?"

I thought it over and couldn't come up with any real excuse to say no. I shrugged and got out of the car. "I guess it wouldn't hurt. I'll run it by Damon and see what he thinks. Maybe we could invited Jeremy, Anna, Jenna, and Alaric."

Her brow rose. "And you thought just the four of us would be awkward?"

I laughed as we walked into the first boutique we came across. "We could just do the four of us. I don't know what their plans are, but I can ask. Is that okay with you?" I asked her as we began looking through the racks.

"I'm thinking just the four of us. It would be weird with Jeremy and Anna because going on a date with your younger brother would be weird. As it would with your aunt and your former teacher who just happens to be your former step-dad." She smiled apologetically as I scowled at her. "You should try this one on," she said, changing the subject abruptly as she pulled a dress off the rack.

I had to admit, it was gorgeous, even if it wasn't really appropriate for the weather. Not that that really mattered where I was concerned. It was a halter made of green jersey knit material. The ends of the dress came to points a little lower than the hem of the dress and it dipped really low in the back. I took it from her, glad we shared the same brain when it came to clothes. "You might as well try it on too. I know you'll be borrowing it," I said and she grinned.

She found a few garments while I hunted down black, high-heeled boots that came up mid-calf, spiral earring in silver, and a few bracelets to match the dress. I even found a black fashion belt that fit perfectly under the bust to give it an empire waist. We both left the store with at least three outfits and the accessories to match and we were feeling great. Shopping was great therapy. I found myself wondering what the fashion trends would be like in a hundred years. I had to shake myself out of that thought to hear Bonnie finish her sentence. "...the Grill?"

"What?"

She sighed. "I'm starving. Want to get something to eat?"

As she asked that question, I could feel the burn course through my body. "I'm starving too."

"Oh."

"I think now would be a good time to call Jeremy. Would you mind if I bailed?"

"No, I want to eat, not be eaten," she teased and I stuck my tongue out at her. "And yes, I will take your stuff home with me."

"Thank you," I said and pulled out my phone to call Jeremy. "Hey," I said when he answered.

"Hi."

"Have you been hunting yet?"

"No. Anna and I were about to go."

"Would you mind if I took you? I want to talk to you," I said.

"Um, sure, let me tell her," he replied and I heard him talking with her. "She said she'll go with her mother and Harper," he added and then laughed. "But of course you already heard that."

"I'll be there in a few," I said and hung up. I used my speed rather than my teleportation. I didn't really use that ability unless it was to play a very mean game of "catch me if you can" with Damon. As I had discovered by taking the bridal party to New York for dresses, it was more of an accelerated speed than it was actual teleportation. As a vampire, I could move fast, very fast. As a vampire-angel-whatever I was now, I could move incredibly fast where it seemed like I could appear somewhere else instantly, but as I discovered when trying to teleport to Europe, I still couldn't move over water.

It took me a good two minutes to get to Jeremy's and he was coming outside to meet me as I approached. "Ready?" he asked. I nodded and took his hand. "Where are we?" he asked when we stopped moving.

We were standing on the edge of a tree line looking at a run down bar in the middle of nowhere. I shrugged, "No idea."

He frowned as he took in the sight. "Damon usually takes me to a city."

My head snapped in his direction. "What?"

His eyes went wide at my surprise. "He's taken me hunting a few times. I thought he would have told you."

I shook my head, still in awe of the revelation. "What does he talk to you about?"

"Mostly about you and he's teaching me some tricks of the trade," he said with a smile that showed me he had been hanging out with Damon. "Anna's been teaching me too, but it's much easier for women to get meals than it is for us. I don't ooze charisma like Damon."

I patted his shoulder. "Damon is full of himself and he's an ass. Girl's love it. You're just fine the way you are Jer."

He grinned and then turned serious. "Look, you don't have to tell me what happened, but I am curious. About what went on while you were looking for him and the fight with Klaus. Anna, Pearl, and Harper are still awestruck that you killed an Original. And I don't fully understand your..." he waved his hands at me. "Whatever you are now."

"I don't fully understand that either so I will let you know when I figure it out," I assured him. "As for the fight with Klaus...it was gruesome. Look, let's eat because it's a long story and then we will go somewhere and catch up. I'm sorry it took so long for me to do this."

"It's okay, you're still new too and no offense, but I really don't want you teaching me anything."

"Ha ha," I said sarcastically and we headed into the bar to grab our meal. And just as I promised, afterwards I told him how the fight went and how I took down Klaus. Like everyone else, he was more concerned with the fact that Damon had staked me and Klaus had gotten his hand inside my stomach and yet I was unmarked and alive, so-to-speak. I wasn't even pretending to understand it myself, but I wasn't questioning it either. When we returned to his place, I remembered what Jenna wanted me to ask him. "Oh, do you have a tux?"

"Not a good one."

"Okay, well I'm going to check with the rest of the guys, but I'm pretty sure you could all use a new tux for the wedding. I'll let you know more soon. Thanks for coming with me today."

"I'm glad you asked me," he said and I headed back to the boarding house.

The minute I walked inside, my phone rang and I answered it to John. "Busy?" he asked.

"Nope, what can I do for you?"

There was a pause and I smiled because I had never seen him have an awkward moment. "Do you have dinner plans?"

"No," I said and my grin got wider over the phone.

"Want to meet me at the Grill tonight around six?" He cleared his throat and added. "I want you to meet someone."

"Six it is," I said, trying to contain the majority of my happiness for him. "Bye," I added and hung up quickly.

"Elena?" came Tyler's voice and he was a little afraid of me at the moment.

"John wants me to meet someone. For him to want to introduce me to her means he wants it to work out."

He returned my grin and stepped forward. "What makes you think it's a girl?" I stared at him and he shook his head. "Maybe it's not a date, but a business associate."

I hesitated on my response before I said, "I don't even know what he does for a living. Hey, I thought you were visiting your uncle?"

"We were on our way when he called and said there was a problem and it would be best if we waited." I could feel the hurt in his voice and in his head as he said that. He was disappointed because he really wanted to join the pack up there; to fit in somewhere with others like him.

"I'm sorry," I said and pulled him into a hug.

Big mistake.

The moment we touched, I felt his heartbeat accelerate and I could hear his blood pumping through his veins. I had just eaten, but the call of his blood was different. I pulled away and looked away from him. "That time, I was not hitting on you."

I risked a look at him and he was smiling. "I know," I said and smiled back at him; the moment of fleeting desire had passed and we were safe. "You'll get to see him soon," I assured him before heading upstairs to get ready for dinner.


	17. Chapter 17

**a/n: my apologies for the lame mental image you probably got of the backyard. My ability to describe decor doesn't match my vision, so just imagine something elegant, breathtaking...and full of Damon :)**

SEVENTEEN

It was only four, but I was excited to get into the new dress with all the accessories. I smiled as I saw my bags on the floor by the door and brought them inside the room with me. Still no Damon. I frowned but only for a moment before shedding the clothes I was currently in and heading to the shower. Something inside of me told me to go all out for this and I was determined to do so.

I put on the dress, boots, and the accessories before straightening my hair and doing my make-up. By the time I was done I did a double take in the mirror. The outfit was too casual to be formal, but it wasn't completely casual either. I looked great and I was ready to meet whoever John was bringing to dinner. I grabbed my jacket that was hanging in the closet and headed downstairs. Stefan and Bonnie were there on the couch with Tyler watching a movie. There was a half eaten box of pizza on the coffee table as well as drinks. All heads turned my way and they stood up. "I was totally right when I told you to buy that," Bonnie said proudly.

"Isn't it a little cold out?" Tyler asked, looking out the window. It was February and there was still snow on the ground, but it was in the sixties and had been for the past few days. Winter was ending rather fast which was good for those of us that were tired of pretending to feel the biting cold.

I held up my coat, "I have this."

He grinned and shook his head before sitting back on the couch. "Where are you going?" Stefan asked.

"John wants me to meet someone tonight at dinner. I'm meeting him there shortly."

"I still don't know if it's a date," Tyler said, still staring at the TV.

"My intuition says it is," I said pointedly and turned my attention to Bonnie and Stefan. Before I could ask them where Damon was off to, my phone rang. "Where the hell have you been?" I asked after reading the caller ID.

"Out with Alaric. We were getting ideas for a bachelor party."

I laughed. "It's a school day."

"That's what substitutes are for," he returned.

I frowned at that. "That would mean you had to request days off beforehand."

"I'll be home soon."

"I'm going to the Grill for dinner with John," I informed him, letting go of the subject that he clearly didn't want to talk about. "I'll be back around seven-thirty."

"I guess I'll see you then," he said and hung up.

I put my phone back in my purse and looked at Stefan. "Anyway, do you have a tux?"

"Of course."

"Wedding appropriate?"

"I didn't know there was a difference," he said and looked from me to Bonnie.

She laughed lightly and shook her head. "I'll see what he has."

"Tyler, what about you?"

"What about me?" he asked, obviously having tuned us out altogether.

"Do you have a tux to wear for the wedding?" I asked and he looked at me with a cocky grin on his face.

"When have I ever needed a tux?"

"Alright, so that's you and Jeremy that needs to go shopping. Alright, well I'm off."

"When you get back, I want all the details," Bonnie said and hugged me before letting me go to the Grill.

I took as much time as I could because it was only five-forty when I left the boarding house. It only took me ten minutes to get to the Grill and as I approached so did John and I frowned when he was alone. "I thought I was meeting someone."

"Soon," was all he said as we hugged briefly before going inside to get a table. "You look great. Cold, but great."

I shrugged as I pulled off my jacket and slid into the booth facing the door. "You have to suffer for beauty," I said casually. "So I'm asking everyone else this, but you have a tux to the wedding right?"

He looked thoughtful as he did a mental rundown of his closet and then shook his head. "I haven't bought a new one in years."

"Alright, so you, Tyler, and Jeremy all need to go shopping. I'm organizing a trip for all of you," I said and noticed a slender blonde walk in and scan the crowd until she saw us. I grinned, "Your date is here."

He turned around and smiled before turning back to me. "Can you-"

"I'll be on my best behavior," I vowed, knowing he wanted me to stay out of her mind. I hadn't planned on doing any digging as it was.

We both stood up as she approached and she smiled nervously in my direction as John kissed her on the cheek in greeting. "This is my daughter Elena. Elena, this is Devyn Cooper."

She extended her hand towards me and I grasped her hand. "I'm so glad to finally meet you. John has told me so much about you, I feel like I already know you."

We took our seats and I smiled. "This is a first for me."

She turned her wide, startled green eyes on John. "You didn't tell her about us?" She turned to me and I could hear her heart racing. I averted my eyes and was glad that I had eaten with Jeremy before I came.

"We're still getting to know each other," I said in hopes to calm her nerves. "I was raised by my aunt and uncle when my mother gave me up for adoption. I didn't know John was my father until about two years ago."

"Oh," she said and her heart rate seemed to decrease a little. "He didn't tell me about that."

"It's okay, it's complicated, but we're still getting to know each other." She relaxed a little and I was relieved. "How long have you been seeing each other?"

"For about six months," she said and I met John's eyes. That meant he had started seeing her while I had been searching for Damon. "We've known each other for years, but he was worried about you on your trip to Europe and that's how things kind of started."

Now it was my turn to be surprised. "When you called me and told me you were in trouble, Devyn was very supportive of my departure on such a short notice," he said, giving me a hidden message that she didn't know about the hidden world she had entered.

"Well thank you for being so understanding. John came at just the right time," I said and silently urged him to change the subject.

Luckily, Devyn did that all on her own. "So I heard about the boy you're seeing. John said you've been together for quite some time. Why isn't he here?"

I had time to gather a story for her as the waitress came and took our orders. "Um, I don't know. He was gone all day," I said and shrugged.

John shifted and I narrowed my eyes at him. Damon was planning something and John knew about it. My eyes widened and I smiled faintly as I realized what was going on. I kept the conversation away from Damon and I which wasn't hard considering Devyn was mostly telling me about her life. She was trying really hard to get me to like her and I wished I could tell her she could stop because I already did. She made John smile in the way that Damon made me smile. As I came to that mental conclusion, I had to shake myself to stop that trail of thought. By quarter after seven, we were done and dinner was paid for. "I'm so glad I finally got to meet you. I mean, I would have met you at the wedding, but this was much less awkward," she said as she drew me into a quick hug when we were outside.

"I'm also glad I got to meet you. It's about time John found someone," I said and winked at him. "One day, I should have you both over for dinner. Damon's an excellent cook."

"That sounds fun," she said and looked at John who nodded. "Where are you parked?" she asked.

"Around the corner," I lied and smiled at them. "Have a good night."

"You too," John said and hugged me. "Night."

I watched them walk to his car and headed around the building before taking off back to the boarding house. I stopped on the edge of the driveway and just looked around. Something was off and there was a strange glow coming from the backyard. I did a sweep of the property to see who was home and came up with only Damon and he was in the backyard. Everything I had been thinking earlier vanished at the thought that he could be in trouble. My legs moved carefully around the house and I stopped completely at the sight of the backyard. "Oh," I breathed and looked around.

"You like it?" Damon asked, coming to my side. He was breath taking in his black silk shirt that showed off the sculpted muscle underneath and black dress pants. I could only nod as I took in the sight of the yard. "I was thinking we could use this set-up for the reception."

I nodded again and swallowed loudly because my throat was dry. "It's gorgeous," I breathed. There were five tents along the outside edge that were made of a sheer ice-blue that floated in the slight breeze. In four of the tents there were tables large enough to hold eight or so people and one tent that was large enough to hold the bridal party. There was a smaller tent off to the side that would be used for the bar and the rest of the backyard was illuminated in stand alone lamps. Where the grass should have been there was a dance floor made of some expensive looking material that I couldn't identify.

"The caterers will be using the kitchen for prep and the DJ will have his own booth over there," he said and pointed off to the remaining side.

"When did you set this up?" I asked as I leaned against him to take in the sight.

"The minute you left for your dinner. I had some help," he admitted and I relaxed even more. The weird feeling I had sensed upon arriving was due to the fact that Bonnie had used some magick. "I know you wanted to plan things, but I figured if it was done, I wouldn't have to hear about it anymore."

I smacked his chest lightly and wandered my way through the backyard to take everything in. "Is this why you were with Alaric all day?" I asked and turned around to see him.

My jaw dropped and I felt tears of joy sting my eyes at the sight of him. He was on the dance floor, down on one knee with an open jewelry box on the palm of his hand. "No," he said, grinning wildly. "This is why I was out with Alaric all day."

My hand automatically went to my chest as I looked at him. "Damon..." I breathed.

"Elena Gilbert, will you marry me?"

That sentence out of his mouth made me laugh because it just didn't seem to fit, but I was nodding regardless. "Of course. Yes!" I said excitedly and in the blink of an eye I was in his arms. I had my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist as I kissed him wildly. He carried me into the kitchen and set me on the counter. He broke the kiss long enough to remove my talisman and move it to my other hand so he could slip the engagement ring onto my finger. It was gorgeous. The band was silver and the diamond was a teardrop cut that had been tinted blue. It wasn't a large stone, but it wasn't exactly small either. "It's beautiful," I breathed and pulled him in for another kiss.

His hands wandered to the hem of my dress and hiked up the skirt. I pushed his hands down and he grinned against my lips. "I told them all I would kill them if they came home," he breathed and kissed me again.

"In that case..." I returned and wrapped my legs around his waist, locking my boot clad ankles together. I reached down to undo the fly of his pants and gently wrapped my fingers around his length. When I sat back, I lifted my hips off the counter so he could reach up my skirt to pull the underwear off of me. In a matter of seconds, I was laying on my back with him sliding inside of me. I looked at him through hooded eyes to see that he had the same look in his eyes. "I love you," I whispered before reaching up to grip his shoulders.

"I love you too," he returned and increased his pace.

I groaned as he began to use his thumb to aide the coming of my release and I felt my fingers digging into his shoulder. He had his hands placed on either side of my hips on the surface of the counter and I pulled him closer with my legs. I sat up to kiss him the moment my head began to bind and he put his hands on my hips to sturdy himself. I put both of my arms around him to hug him even closer and then tipped my head back as my release began. It intensified from the feeling of his fangs easing into my flesh and I felt my insides warm up as he came with me. When we finished, he lapped the excess blood from my skin before I sat back on my elbows and looked up at him.

"You might as well ditch the clothes," I breathed as I slid off the counter and moved toward the stairs. "I have a lot more ways to say thank you."


	18. Chapter 18

**a/n: just to clarify, Elena is NOT a clairvoyant...so don't worry.**

EIGHTEEN

There was no noise whatsoever. No wind, no insects; nothing. Even as I took a step forward, my bare feet on the grass didn't make a sound. I looked down and I could see myself wearing the bridesmaid dress I was going to wear to Jenna's wedding. My eyes wandered around my surroundings and found I was in the clearing that always appeared in my dreams. I turned around, trying to find out why I was there and when I turned back Anya was there. "Anya," I breathed and my voice sounded like a shout in the noiseless atmosphere.

She looked worried and her eyes were focused on something over my shoulder. I turned back around and I could see Jenna and everyone else standing at the alter. They were staring at me in confusion and I looked back at Anya. When I did, she was pointing off to her right behind where the boys were standing. "They are coming after you."

I could see three figures standing in the shadows where the scene was fading. "Who are they?" I asked her.

"The others. They heard what you did to Klaus. You are stronger than they are, but if they work together, it may not be enough. You must hurry."

A sense of urgency coursed through me and I tried to move forward as the others came out of the shadows and began to grab people. Their faces were a blur and although there wasn't any sound, I could tell everyone was screaming and shouting. Jenna's white dress was stained with blood and Bonnie's lips were moving in a chant. "How can I defeat them? What's their weakness?" I asked, still trying to struggle against the unseen restraints.

I looked over my shoulder to see what was taking her so long to answer. Her lips were moving, but there was no sound. I couldn't tell what she was trying to say and as I looked back at the scene in front of me, it was just in time to see Damon disintegrate into dust right before my eyes. A strangled cry escaped my lips and I struggled harder as I tried to get to him. In a matter of seconds everything faded and the restraints disappeared, leaving me to fall forward and land on my hands and knees. I got up and slowly looked around even though everything was black and I felt as though I were floating. It was like being in limbo, waiting to either wake up or for something else to happen. Right when I thought I was coming back to consciousness, Anya's voice tore through me so loudly I had to clamp my hands over my ears. "White ash wood," was what I heard and then everything stopped and I woke up.

I was laying on my side when my eyes open and I could feel Damon's lips on my shoulder while his hand slithered up and down my hipbone. "Morning," I said lightly, trying to get the ringing in my ears to go away, Anya's voice still echoing lightly through my head.

"Morning," he returned, his breath warming my skin while he smoothed my hair away from my neck. I turned so I was laying on my back, looking up at him. His smile faded instantly and his brow furrowed down at me. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head, trying to figure out how to put it into words. "I'm not really sure. Hopefully it wasn't a precognition," I breathed and cupped his face. "I'm pretty sure it was a dream," I added, more for my benefit. "I saw Jenna's wedding and Anya. There were vampires in the shadows that started attacking everyone and...they killed you."

He slid an arm around my waist and pulled me close to him so that I was snuggled up against his bare chest. "I'm right here."

"It was the other Originals. Anya said they're after me because they found out I killed Klaus," I finally managed to get out. He stroked my hair while I replayed the scene over and over again. "It didn't feel the same as the psychometry so I really don't think it was the real future. Anya was just warning me."

"What else did she have to say?" he asked, resting his chin on the top of my head.

"She said 'white ash wood' but I don't know what she meant about it. It might be what defeats them, but I can't be sure and it's too much of a risk to just assume." I sighed and moved closer to him. "Whatever it was, I'm sure it'll happen again, it always does."

"Have you made up your mind on whether or not you want to go after them?"

I pulled back slightly to look at him. "I guess I have to now. They won't stop until I'm dead or they are. That doesn't leave me much of a choice," I said and got up.

I moved to the closet and started going through his side to look at his suits. "What are you doing?"

"Changing the subject so my mind will stop racing with worst case scenarios," I said and pulled out two all black suits. One had a fine pinstripe and the other was solid. "Which one?"

"I don't think you could pull off a suit."

He was grinning wildly and I shook my head. "Not for me; for you for the wedding. So far I need to take John, Jeremy, and Tyler shopping for a tux. Do you have one?"

"It's very outdated, I'll just get a new one," he said and in the blink of an eye, the suits were on the floor and I was in his arms with his lips on mine.

"Oh, that reminds me, do you have anything planned for Friday?" I asked. He was staring at me in utter confusion and I grinned. "Of course not, you're a man. Men always forget."

"Forget what?"

"Valentine's day," I replied and his lips made an O. "It's forgiven," I added and held up the hand with the engagement ring on it. "But Bonnie-"

"No," he said flatly with a bit of force behind it.

"I didn't even ask anything."

"Tell me it's anything but a double date and I'll reconsider." I just stared at him for a moment. "Thought so," he mumbled and moved past me to the bathroom.

"Oh come on, it'll be fun."

He turned towards me after starting the shower and cocked an eyebrow. "Fun and Stefan do not mix."

I frowned and crossed my arms. "That's not true and you know it. Please? For me?" I asked, playing up the pouting innocence I knew he couldn't say no to.

However, this time he seemed to have some resistance to it. He looked up towards the ceiling, muttered something in a few different languages, and then turned back to me. "Fine, but he pays."

I smiled and beat him to the shower. "Deal. Thank you," I said and grabbed his hand before pulling him in with me.

* * *

When I told Bonnie Damon agreed to the double date, she insisted that he and Stefan work together to plan our evening and surprise us with the result. I warned her that probably wasn't going to end well, but I was curious about the result as well as the process. Of course that was after she inspected the ring, hugged me, and did the girl squeal of excitement with me. I felt slightly guilty when I told Jenna and everyone else because I wanted the focus to be on her wedding. She immediately told me to shut up and be happy. That was the last time I made a big deal out of it because everyone was in on the proposal. Even John's dinner plans had been the distraction to get me out of the house so the others could set up everything. Out of all of us, Tyler was the only that didn't have a date. The good thing about it was that he had finally gone to Maine to see his uncle so I didn't have to feel sorry for him all day and it squashed the need to ask Damon if we could include him in our plans. Not that I would have.

As it turned out, the Salvatore brothers worked quite nicely together after all. They had planned the whole evening, leaving Bonnie and I to pick out our attire which we were told to keep semi-formal. Another excuse to go shopping. Again, Bonnie had picked out an amazing dress for both of us. Even as I looked at the full length mirror outside the dressing room I had to resist the urge to compare myself to Katherine. If the dress didn't fit so perfectly, I would have put it back. It was a black dress that came to just below my knees and the top had a squared neckline that pulled into a halter and a bodice that was a mock corset. It even laced in the back like one with blood red ribbon. I had the black boots I had bought last time so my outfit was easy. Bonnie's dress was a black and yellow asymmetrical number. The skirt was longer on one side and had one shoulder strap on the side with the shorter skirt length. She had black heels at the boarding house and we were doing each other's hair and make-up the minute we got back.

We had an early lunch before going back to get ready. Damon had informed me we were eating in Richmond and we were taking a car so it wouldn't ruin our outfits which we both graciously appreciated. "I'll do yours first," I said to Bonnie and had her sit at the vanity so I could start on her hair. I pulled all of it off to the side to expose the shoulder that didn't have the strap and let it hang loose. I curled it and pinned it with bobby pins galore before I decided it looked perfect and moved on to make-up. We kept it simple with basics and I gave her lids a brush of white shimmer and that was it. "Good?" I asked and she inspected herself in the mirror.

"Perfect," she said and then did mine. She had pulled the top half of my hair into a ponytail and then curled the rest so that it floated around my shoulders. My make-up consisted of smokey eyeshadow that set off my golden green eyes and foundation like hers. She dipped a blush brush into the shimmer powder I had used on her eyes and swept it onto my cheeks. "Gorgeous."

"No kidding," I said as I looked at myself in a few different angles. "Dresses next."

We helped each other into the garments and then finished them off with the necessary accessories. Bonnie glanced at her phone and nodded in approval. "Stefan said be ready by four. It's four on the dot."

I laughed and hooked my arm into hers before heading downstairs to meet the boys who were waiting for us. I was instantly envious of Damon as he stood there in his black dress slacks and black silk shirt complete with a dark blue tie. He was one of those people that looked good both in clothes and out of them. It was a very rare thing. I glanced at Stefan who was looking very smashing in an outfit similar to Damon's though his was a navy blue. "Ladies," Damon said smoothly as he pulled a single rose from behind his back and handed it to me.

"Thank you," I said, and took it from him. It brought back the distant memory of the time when he had given me a rose at the Founder's party. That was the night everything had changed for all of us. I put my head down to hide the look of guilt I know I had on my face.

"You look great," Stefan said to both of us.

Damon grabbed my hand and gestured to the door. "Shall we?"

The ride to Richmond was in a very large limousine complete with champagne. To everyone's surprise, we were all getting along as if nothing traumatic had ever happened. It was a nice change of pace. At times it did feel like a high school prom night with the amount of laughter and playful banter being exchanged. When we got to the restaurant we were seated in one of the VIP tables and given menus to look over. Unfortunately for Bonnie and I, they were in French. "Some day, I'm going to know what you're muttering," I joked with Damon as he translated the menu and from the looks that Stefan kept shooting over to us, he was saying some other things as well.

"In due time," he replied before we placed our orders and then sat back.

"Thank you for doing this," I said to both of them.

"It was a challenge on my part and I'm very glad it worked out," Bonnie admitted. "Though I did have my doubts."

Damon slipped an arm around me and I put my head on his shoulder. "The days of trying to kill my younger brother are over," he said and I grinned along with Stefan. Bonnie, on the other hand, looked a little uneasy by that statement. _Because I have what I want_, he thought at me and I moved as close as I could be to him without being in his lap.

The waiter brought four glasses of a very expensive wine that we didn't order. "On the house for celebrating your evening quite generously," he said in a faint French accent.

"Thank you," Stefan said and we watched as the waiter walked away. "That was nice of them," he said as he distributed them.

Just as he put the glass to his lips, I put my fingers on the glass and saw what the wine was laced with. "No!" I shrieked as quietly and urgently as I could. He jerked the glass away from his mouth, spilling a little on the table and looked at me with fright. "It's laced with vervain."

"What?" came three voices both mentally and aloud.

I nodded. "The waiter wasn't the one that took our orders," I said, following the man with my eyes as he noticed our display and tried to dash away. "Excuse me," I said and cut him off at the back exit before he even rounded the corner of the hallway. He turned to go back, but I moved and cut him off. "Who sent you?" I asked as I grabbed him by the throat and shoved him against the wall.

"Like I would tell you," he snapped. His accent was gone having been a fake in the first place. I applied more pressure on his throat and he cried out as I lifted him off the floor a little. "V-Velkan," he stuttered as he tried to gasp for air.

"Who is that?"

His eyes went wide and his fear escalated. _She looks so much like Katherine_, came his thought across my mind because he was too afriad to speak and couldn't get enough air to say that much.

I growled and threw him to the ground so hard I felt the hallway tremble. "I am not Katherine and you can tell Velken, whoever the hell he is, that if he ever tries anything like this again, I will hunt him down and kill him. Understand?"

He nodded rapidly as he tried to scramble to his feet. "Y-yes."

"And the same goes for you," I said around my fully extended canines. He finally managed to get up and ran through the back exit. I looked down at my hands and swore; they had a fair amount of blood on them. On the plus side, I didn't have blood anywhere else. I went to the bathroom and washed my hands off before returning to the table. "Thanks for you help," I said sarcastically when I slid into the booth beside Damon.

"We figured you could handle it," Stefan said, smiling wearily.

"What did he want?" Damon asked, taking my hands in his at the same time Bonnie asked, "You okay?"

"Not here," I said and shook my head, putting on a fake smile. "Let's just enjoy our dinner and worry about it later. Just don't drink the wine," I warned and we went back to our original plan of having a now somewhat normal evening.


	19. Chapter 19

**a/n: this is the last chapter for this story. It's been a blast and I'm going to be tying everything up in the last installement so don't worry :) Thanks again to all my readers and reviews!**

NINETEEN

I recanted the events at the restaurant once we were in the boarding house, safely out of human earshot. "Who's Velken?" Stefan asked after I was done.

I sat back against the couch and rubbed my temples. "I'm assuming he's an Original. The fact that Katherine knew him was just an added bonus." The last part was something I muttered under my breath mostly for me; not necessarily for me.

"Regardless of who and what he is, how did he know we were going to be in Richmond?" Bonnie asked from the chair she was sitting in.

"From what Anya said, the Originals heard about how I killed Klaus and now they're all ganging up on me. I'm also assuming he's the closest and he tracked me down first." I had opened my eyes to see Bonnie and Stefan exchanging worried glances.

"When did Anya tell you this?" Stefan asked.

I looked at Damon and then realized I had forgotten no one knew about the dream I had had a few days ago. "I guess I should have started there," I mumbled and told them about the dream. "I asked her how to defeat them and she just said white ash wood. As much as I would love to just go with it, it's too much of a risk to assume that that defeats all of them."

"We should just go after Velken. If he sent someone to pump us with vervain, he meant for us to be taken somewhere. It couldn't have been far," Damon said from the opposite end of the couch. "Maybe we should go back and have Bonnie do a scrying spell to find him."

I had been on edge since tracking down the "waiter" since it had put me in the mood I had been in while searching for Damon and it was making me snappy. "If I thought that was a good idea, why would we have come back here?" That earned weary glances from all three of them. "Sorry," I mumbled. "What I meant to say was that yes, theoretically, that is a good plan. However, we don't have any white ash, we don't know how many other vampires we'd be up against, and I don't know what order on the list Velken is. If he's not the Original that was brought into the world after Klaus, then it won't matter how much I try to kill him."

The room went silent as the three of them chided themselves for not remembering that part. "Did Klaus know about Anya?" Bonnie asked.

"No. He knew she was an angel, but he didn't know why she was brought here until I told him."

"So we could go after Velken and threaten his life until he tells us about the other Originals right?" Damon asked, obviously spoiling for a fight. However, his question gave me another option; one that he was not going to like.

I looked at all of them before I spoke. "There is one person we could ask about them."

"No," came three loud voices.

"As much as I would _love _to see you kill her again, it is a very bad idea," Damon said.

Before I could protest, Bonnie presented an idea. "What about contacting Anya?"

"How?" the three of us asked her in unison.

"She comes from a higher plane of existence, but when she couldn't complete her task, she passed her essence to you. If she was able to contact you in a dream, that means part of her is still trapped in some sort of limbo between this plane and hers. She can't fully cross over until you complete your task."

"She did mention something about her essence leaving once the others had been destroyed," I said and nodded. "So you could help me contact her?"

"I can't promise anything, but I'll try. I vaguely remember the book saying something about it. Hang on," Bonnie said and I got the mental image of a lightbulb turning on before she dashed upstairs to retrieve the spell book. When she came back down, she was quickly leafing through pages. "Ah ha! I knew it!" she said, mostly to herself and then cleared her throat before handing the book to me and tapped the page. "Hemimorphite."

"What?"

"It's a stone that witches use to accelerate the communication waves with angelic creatures. There's a whole list of stones on this page and the next and I thought that was the most interesting one. I just researched it a few days ago."

I raised my brow at her. "Are you sure you're not psychic?"

She grinned, "I guess we'll find that out. It's too late now, but there's a Wiccan shop not far from town that I can visit to get the crystals. Then we can try to contact Anya."

I nodded and handed the book back to her. "I'll go with you," Stefan said as she went back to the chair they were sharing.

"Let's keep this under the radar for right now. No sense in getting anyone else involved until we know for sure what's going on," I warned them and they reluctantly nodded. I put my hand on my forehead and thought about Devyn. She was so normal I wondered how she was going to react to all of this when John told her. If he told her. I shook myself mentally and smiled reassuringly at Damon. "Sorry for ruining what would have been the perfect date."

"It's not your fault there are eight demon-vamps after you," Damon teased.

I smacked him lightly on the shoulder before moving to sit closer to him. "Yes, thank you," I said dryly and put my head on his shoulder. The want for a chase was still coursing through me and it was all I could do not to lunge at Bonnie if I looked at her for more than a few seconds at a time. "I think we should go hunting," I whispered to him.

Bonnie didn't hear me, but Stefan did. "Good idea," he said and got up from the arm of the chair.

"Have fun," Bonnie said as she kissed Stefan briefly before going upstairs.

"Does she know you still drink human blood?" I asked him after she was gone.

He nodded. "I explained to her that I'm in control and I still need to be strong for you." He stopped after he said that and cleared his throat. Damon slid a hand possessively around my waist. "What I meant was, in order to help you, I needed to keep my strength up." He was staring at Damon now as he said that.

"As long as you're not lying to her," I said and pushed them away from each other. "I think we should hunt alone," I added and took off before they could protest.

* * *

With the Hemimorphite placed around my body while I laid on the floor in the living room, Bonnie began her hypnosis to put me into a sleep-like state. Damon and Stefan were standing by to write down the things that I said on the off chance that I didn't remember anything. "Ready?" Bonnie asked.

I smiled as I looked at her. "I should be asking you that."

She grinned and nodded. "Alright, silence from everyone. Elena, I need you to relax and fill your thoughts of Anya. The more you imagine her, the easier it might be for you to find her."

I closed my eyes and took deep, even breaths to relax myself. It took longer than I had hoped because my mind was all over the place, but once I had the image of Anya, it seemed to shut out everything else in the room. My body felt as if it were floating and soon I was standing up in a shimmering void staring face-to-face with the bodiless angel. "Anya, I need your help."

Her blue eyes were more enhanced than any photo-shopped picture I had ever come across and her face was iridescent. Her body from the shoulders down seemed to be hazy and ghost-like. Her brow was faintly creased with worry, but her eyes were emotionless. "How can I help you?" she asked. Her voice was echoing through the nothingness that surrounded us.

"I need to know the names of the other Originals. I need to know if white ash wood is definitely going to kill them. Any other information about how to find them would be great."

She inclined her head and the motion made me dizzy from the streaks of shimmer that marked her movement. "They are coming to you. As long as they know you are responsible for killing Klaus, they will seek you out."

That was exactly what I did _not _want to happen. Mystic Falls wasn't ready for vampires, much less demons. On the upside, the people I needed to help me were here. "What was the order of their birth?" I asked.

"First there was Klaus. Then Nysa. She was from the time of the Greeks and she is ruthless. Balthazar followed in her wake and they wreak havoc as a team. Hisoka came from the ancient Japanese culture followed by Tavarus of the African tribes. Ishmael, the outcast son of Abraham was born the day he was banished. Reina kept mostly to herself in Spain. Everlilde and Waylon were twins such as Klaus and I, however, they were both born as true demons. I do no know which was born first. Velken is still relatively new, but he is the last. He is just as cruel as Klaus and because he is young, his powers are still new to him."

"Why didn't you tell me this before?"

"There wasn't enough time."

I sighed and nodded. "How long do I have before they find me?" I hesitated before I asked, afraid of the answer.

"They have already found you," she said with worry in her voice. "As a rule, they cannot be in the same place for too long before they become territorial and turn on each other, but they will attack once they have a battle plan. If you do not act fast, I fear that you and your loved ones will not survive."

"Why didn't you tell me that once I killed Klaus they would track me down?"

Hurt passed in her eyes for a moment. "I did not want you to know. I thought you would spare him and ignore your duty."

"He took Damon. He messed with his mind so badly that only his death turned Damon back to normal. You should have told me. I could have been more prepared for this instead of idly sitting here waiting to be attacked." I was furious now. I wanted to go scream and lash out at her. Instead, I began to retreat back to reality.

"Before you go," she said in a warning tone.

"What?" I snapped.

Her face had faded considerably and the black void was beginning to lighten up. I could see the living room around the edges. "Each of them has a special talent only they posses."

"So?"

I saw her smile in an eerie way and a tear slid down her cheek as her faded blue eyes turned sorrowful. "I have seen your death," she breathed.

"I'm already dead," I mumbled, but my heart leapt into my throat.

"Your final death."

"How?" I asked but I was laying on the floor in the living room. Damon was wiping tears from my face from the spot next to me. I sat up quickly and clung to him.

"Elena? What happened?" he asked as his hold on me tightened to the point I thought I would be torn in two.

I shook my head, soaking his shirt in the process with my tears. "Did you catch the order?" I asked against him when I could speak.

"Yes," he said and pulled away slightly to look at me. "We only heard the names and it was weird because it wasn't your voice and your lips didn't move until you asked 'how?' to her. What was that about?"

I looked at Stefan and Bonnie who were nodding. I could see the goosebumps on Bonnie's arms. "It was Anya's voice and it was clear as if she were standing right there," Stefan informed me.

I turned back to Damon and put my head on his shoulder, wiping at my eyes in the process. "Nothing," I mumbled, deciding I didn't need to share that information with anyone just yet. It wasn't something I wanted them to fret over and that is exactly what they would do. "I just asked her how to be sure about who was who, but I woke up before she answered," I lied and from the way he was looking at me told me that he knew I was lying. "They're on their way here and there's no stopping them," I added as I pulled myself to my feet.


End file.
